Morocco Natural Resources Explained 2026

MOROCCO · RESOURCES

Morocco resources run from the phosphate beds of Khouribga to Atlantic fisheries, argan forests and a few small gas fields. This guide explains who extracts them, who profits and what they cost in water, as of October 2026.

Morocco resources start with phosphate, and the kingdom holds about 68% of the world’s known reserves, the US Geological Survey estimates. Only China mines more phosphate rock, and Morocco’s output reached an estimated 36 million tonnes in 2025.

That matters in the United States, where phosphate fertilizer underpins corn, soybean and wheat yields. This guide covers minerals, energy, water, farmland, fisheries and forests, and who extracts and profits from each.

Morocco Resources at a Glance

Morocco is a kingdom of 36,828,330 people at the 2024 census, on the northwest corner of Africa. Its northern tip faces Spain across the Strait of Gibraltar, about 14 kilometres wide at the narrowest point.

Real growth hit 4.9% in 2025, with agricultural value added up 8.2% and mining up 7.5%, the statistics agency’s provisional accounts show. Conversions in this guide use 9.83 dirhams per US$, the open.er-api.com rate of 15 October 2026.

The resource map follows the climate, from the wetter north to the dry south and the Sahara. Phosphate lies under the central plateaus around Khouribga, Benguerir and Youssoufia, where OCP runs its main mines.

Energy is the weak spot, because Morocco produces little oil or gas of its own. Bank Al-Maghrib, the central bank, expects the energy import bill to rise 28.4% to 138.1 billion dirhams (about US$14.0 billion) in 2026.

Phosphate, the Resource That Defines Morocco

The USGS put Morocco’s phosphate rock reserves at 50 billion tonnes in its February 2026 summary, out of 73 billion worldwide. China, the next largest holder, has 3.4 billion tonnes, and the United States has 1 billion.

OCP Group, the state phosphate company, reported marketable rock output of 38 million tonnes in 2025, up 7.6%. Part of that went into a strategic stock of about 3 million tonnes, its 2025 annual financial report says.

Its Jorf Lasfar chemical complex on the Atlantic coast turned out a record 12.7 million tonnes of fertilizer in 2025. Fertilizers earned 77.0 billion of its 113.9 billion dirhams in 2025 revenue (about US$7.8 billion of US$11.6 billion).

Rock exports reached 6.7 million tonnes in 2025, the same as in 2024, the report adds. Bank Al-Maghrib expects raw phosphate prices to edge up to US$212 a tonne in 2026.

OCP plans to expand further, with two new mining axes at Mzinda and Meskala due by 2030. The Meskala-Essaouira axis alone targets 25 million tonnes of rock a year, the company says.

Washington now treats phosphate as strategic, adding phosphate rock to the US critical minerals list in November 2025, the USGS notes. US mines produced about 20 million tonnes in 2025, against Morocco’s estimated 36 million.

Who Extracts and Who Profits

The Moroccan state owns 94.12% of OCP, and the Banque Centrale Populaire banking group holds 5.00%, the 2025 accounts show. In 2025 the state received net dividends of 7.4 billion dirhams (about US$750 million) from the group.

OCP booked revenue of 113.9 billion dirhams (about US$11.6 billion) in 2025, up 17.5%, helped by strong fertilizer demand in India. Its EBITDA, a measure of operating profit, reached 43.2 billion dirhams (about US$4.4 billion).

Net profit attributable to the group came to 17.7 billion dirhams (about US$1.8 billion) in 2025. OCP employed 27,176 people at the end of that year, up from 22,331 a year earlier.

The first half of 2026 was harder, as the war in Iran from late February pushed up energy and input prices. OCP’s revenue fell 7% to 48.4 billion dirhams (about US$4.9 billion), its 29 September 2026 results show.

EBITDA dropped to 13.3 billion dirhams (about US$1.4 billion), cutting the margin to 28% from 36%, as sulphur and ammonia costs soared. Mostafa Terrab, OCP’s chairman and chief executive, said the group kept a solid margin profile despite tougher market conditions.

OCP shifted towards triple superphosphate, or TSP, a fertilizer that needs less sulphur and no ammonia. TSP made up 35% of its exported fertilizer volumes in the first half of 2026, against 26% a year earlier.

OCP also borrows abroad, raising US$1.75 billion in international bonds in April 2025, when Moody’s confirmed its investment grade Baa3 rating. Its net financial debt stood at 115.5 billion dirhams (about US$11.7 billion) on 30 June 2026.

Beyond phosphate, Managem, a listed mining group and subsidiary of the Al Mada investment fund, mines cobalt, copper, zinc, silver and gold. It employs about 5,000 people at 13 mining operations and 20 industrial units in seven African countries.

Morocco also mined about 1 million tonnes of barite in 2025, USGS estimates show, with only India and China listed higher. Barite goes into drilling fluids for oil and gas wells, and Morocco supplied 19% of US imports from 2021 to 2024.

The Rio Times guide to who runs Morocco’s economy profiles OCP, Al Mada and the big family groups. Its explainer on who dominates Morocco shows how the palace, the state and business elites overlap.

Western Sahara and the Resource Question

Part of OCP’s phosphate comes from Western Sahara, a territory the United Nations treats as non-self-governing and whose status is unresolved. Morocco controls most of it, while the Polisario Front campaigns for an independent Sahrawi state.

OCP’s subsidiary Phosboucraa mines the Bou Craa deposit there and reported marketable output of 2.1 million tonnes in 2025, up 61.5%. That is about 5.5% of OCP’s total, and the unit earned 839 million dirhams (about US$85 million) in net profit.

OCP says a new washing plant at Laâyoune, sized for 3 million tonnes a year, was 94% complete at end-2025. Infrastructure work on a new Laâyoune port had reached the same stage.

Trade in the territory’s fish and crops is contested too, mainly in Europe. On Friday, 4 October 2024, the EU Court of Justice upheld the annulment of 2019 EU-Morocco fisheries and farm trade decisions.

The court found that the people of Western Sahara had not consented to the deals as applied to their territory. The Rio Times has covered how EU trade rules for Western Sahara now hinge on origin labels.

In October 2025 the UN Security Council adopted Resolution 2797, calling Morocco’s 2007 autonomy plan a basis for talks. It extended the UN mission there, MINURSO, until 31 October 2026, so the Council must decide on renewal by then.

The USGS lists its 50 billion tonne estimate under Morocco without a separate figure for Western Sahara. The Rio Times Morocco history explainer covers the 1975 Green March and the 1991 ceasefire.

Oil, Gas and the Energy Import Bill

Morocco imports nearly all the natural gas it burns for power, because its domestic gas output is small. Gas reaches Morocco from Spain through the Maghreb-Europe pipeline, supplied from Spanish terminals such as Huelva.

The war in Iran from late February 2026 lifted energy prices to their 2022 peaks, the High Commission for Planning says. The government kept butane and electricity prices unchanged and subsidised road transport operators, Bank Al-Maghrib notes.

Two gas finds carry Morocco’s hopes of producing more at home. Both involve ONHYM, the National Office of Hydrocarbons and Mines, the state body that holds stakes in oil and gas licences.

At Tendrara in the east, British firm Sound Energy sent first gas into the field’s gathering system in December 2025, Hespress reported. Afriquia Gaz, a Moroccan gas distributor, agreed to buy 100 million cubic metres a year for ten years.

Sound then sold its 20% stake in the Tendrara concession to Managem for US$57.0 million, completing the deal in August 2026. Its 17 September 2026 half-year report did not confirm first sales from the field’s small liquefied gas plant.

Off the northern Atlantic coast, London-listed Chariot operates the Anchois gas project with 75%, and ONHYM holds the other 25%. Chariot values it at US$0.65 billion to US$1 billion on a 100% basis, using a 10% discount rate.

No final investment decision had been announced when Chariot published its 2025 results on 30 June 2026. The gas would serve the Moroccan market first, with any surplus exported through the existing pipeline to Spain.

Renewables made up 46% of the energy mix in 2025, against 37% in 2021, the energy minister told parliament in May 2026. Leila Benali, minister in the outgoing government, put total installed capacity at 12.2 gigawatts in 2025, Yabiladi reported.

The Noor solar power station near Ouarzazate is one of the projects behind that rise. OCP completed three solar farms totalling 202 megawatts at Benguerir and Khouribga in 2025, its report says.

Morocco is also promoting a planned gas pipeline from Nigeria along the Atlantic coast. The Rio Times has followed the Atlantic Africa pipeline’s search for US and World Bank finance.

Water, Drought and Desalination

Water links every other resource, from irrigated farms to phosphate plants. Morocco’s dams were 65.7% full on Monday, 12 October 2026, the Ministry of Equipment and Water’s maaDialna platform reported.

Fill rates still vary widely between river basins, the same ministry data show. The south stays drier, with the Drâa-Oued Noun basin at 36.1% and Souss-Massa at 47.6%.

The Oum Er-Rbia basin in the centre-west stood at 58.3%. OCP’s 2025 report cites persistent water stress there, and the group now meets all industrial needs with desalinated or treated water.

OCP desalinated 139 million cubic metres of seawater in 2025, nearly double the 71 million of 2024. Its Jorf Lasfar unit now covers more than a quarter of drinking water needs in Casablanca South, the company says.

OCP Green Water, a subsidiary, raised 6 billion dirhams (about US$610 million) to expand desalination. It targets 630 million cubic metres a year by 2030, for OCP plants as well as towns and farms.

Nationally, Morocco ran 17 desalination plants with four more under construction in December 2025, Equipment and Water Minister Nizar Baraka said. Desalination supplied about 25% of drinking water then, and he set a target of 60% by 2030, Médias24 reported.

The national goal is 1.7 billion cubic metres of desalinated water a year by 2030. Acciona of Spain, Afriquia Gaz and Green of Africa are building the Casablanca plant, sized at 200 million cubic metres a year.

Le360 reported that the plant can later expand to 300 million cubic metres a year. Opposition parties accused Aziz Akhannouch, head of government since 2021, of a conflict of interest over that contract.

TelQuel reported in 2023 that members of his family hold an indirect stake in Afriquia Gaz, a listed company. Akhannouch told parliament in December 2024 that the tender was transparent and the project would receive no state financial aid.

He leads a caretaker government until Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri, named head of government on 29 September 2026, forms her cabinet. The Rio Times reported on a US$294 million EBRD loan for Moroccan water security in July 2026.

Fertilizer buyers also watch pollution, and Europe regulates cadmium, a toxic metal found in some phosphate rock. OCP says it produced about 3 million tonnes of low-cadmium fertilizer for Europe and other regulated markets in 2025.

The group’s US$13 billion green investment programme for 2023 to 2027 targets 100% clean energy and non-conventional water by 2027. It also aims for carbon neutrality by 2040, according to its 2025 accounts.

Farmland, Fisheries and Forests

Farming still rises and falls with the rain, and agriculture has rebounded strongly in 2026. The Department of Agriculture estimates the 2026 cereal harvest at 93 million quintals, or 9.3 million tonnes, Bank Al-Maghrib reported.

Bank Al-Maghrib expects agricultural value added to jump 16% in 2026, then fall 7.6% in 2027 if harvests return to average. The planning agency estimates farm output grew 19.9% year on year in the third quarter of 2026.

Morocco’s long Atlantic coast and short Mediterranean shore support a large fishing industry. Coastal and artisanal landings fell 15% to 1.13 million tonnes in 2025, worth 10.11 billion dirhams (about US$1.03 billion).

The argan tree, a species endemic to southwest Morocco, anchors the Arganeraie, a UNESCO biosphere reserve since 1998. The reserve covers about 2.5 million hectares, and argan oil goes into cooking, traditional medicine and cosmetics.

Most people in the reserve live from sheep herding, farming and argan oil production. UNESCO notes that the trees also supply firewood for cooking and heating.

What It Means for US Readers

For US farmers, the key change came on Monday, 29 June 2026, when President Donald Trump signed Proclamation 11038. It allows duty-free imports of Moroccan phosphate fertilizer for up to eight months, citing threats to fertilizer supply.

OCP resumed fertilizer exports to the United States in July and August, the company said. The Rio Times covered the first Moroccan phosphate cargo to reach a US port in five years.

US producers Mosaic and Simplot are defending the 2021 countervailing duty order in its first five-year review. In July 2026 the Commerce Department found preliminarily that revoking it would likely bring back subsidies of 20.04% for OCP.

The US International Trade Commission will hold its hearing on Thursday, 1 April 2027. Its vote decides whether the order survives, along with duties that would return when the emergency waiver ends.

For investors, OCP shares are not listed, but its international dollar bonds give access to the group. Bank Al-Maghrib lets the currency move 5% either side of a central rate based on 60% euro and 40% US$.

The planning agency says the dirham lost 3.8% against the US$ in the third quarter of 2026. The Rio Times has tracked the dirham’s fall against the dollar since August.

The central bank held its key rate at 2.25% on Tuesday, 22 September 2026, citing very high uncertainty. It expects exports of phosphate and its derivatives to rise 9.7% in 2026 on higher fertilizer prices.

A US-Morocco free trade agreement has been in force since 1 January 2006, the US Trade Representative’s office says. For travel and relocation, start with the Rio Times Casablanca city guide and Rabat city guide.

For the wider picture, see foreign powers and investors in Morocco. All Morocco coverage is collected on the Morocco news hub.

What Prediction Markets Say

On Polymarket, traders gave a 94.5% chance that Aziz Akhannouch is out as Morocco’s prime minister by 31 December 2026. That was the displayed price on 15 October at 8:29 a.m. ET, with about US$173,000 traded.

These are bets, not polls, and the market matters because the next government will set energy, water and farm policy. A separate contract gave El Mansouri, of the Authenticity and Modernity Party, a 94.7% chance of becoming the next prime minister.

Why we show this: prediction markets turn real-money bets into a live probability that moves within minutes of the news, which is why investors, campaigns and newsrooms in the United States now follow them closely. We show them next to polls and official results, never instead of them.

What Is Not Known

No cabinet had been named by 15 October 2026, so the next energy, water and agriculture ministers are not yet known. It is also unclear whether the new government will change course on desalination contracts or gas licences.

Tendrara’s first commercial liquefied gas sales and an Anchois investment decision had not been confirmed in the latest company reports. The USGS does not say how much of Morocco’s listed phosphate reserves lies in Western Sahara.

The outcome of the MINURSO renewal vote, due by 31 October 2026, is not known. Nor is the strength of the 2026 to 2027 rainy season, which will decide whether reservoirs stay well above last year’s levels.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the main natural resources of Morocco?

Phosphate is the main one, with about 68% of known world reserves in the USGS February 2026 summary. Morocco also has fisheries, farmland, argan forests and barite, but it produces little oil or gas.

Who owns OCP, the Moroccan phosphate company?

The Moroccan state owns 94.12% of OCP, and the Banque Centrale Populaire group holds 5.00%. The state received net dividends of about US$750 million from OCP in 2025.

Does the United States buy phosphate fertilizer from Morocco?

Yes, and a June 2026 proclamation allowed Moroccan phosphate fertilizer in free of countervailing duties for up to eight months. OCP resumed fertilizer shipments to the United States in July and August 2026.

Does Morocco have oil and gas?

Morocco produces little oil or gas and expects to spend about US$14.0 billion on energy imports in 2026. Two gas projects, Tendrara onshore and Anchois offshore, involve the state office ONHYM, but neither had confirmed commercial sales by October 2026.

Is Morocco running out of water?

Dams were 65.7% full on 12 October 2026, the water ministry’s daily figures show. Morocco is still expanding desalination toward 1.7 billion cubic metres a year by 2030 to cut its dependence on rainfall.

Who mines the phosphate in Western Sahara?

OCP subsidiary Phosboucraa mines the Bou Craa deposit, which produced 2.1 million tonnes of marketable phosphate in 2025. The UN treats Western Sahara as a non-self-governing territory, and its final status remains unresolved.

Sources: USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026, phosphate rock; USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026, barite; OCP 2025 annual financial report (AMMC filing); OCP first-half 2026 results, 29 September 2026 (AMMC filing); Bank Al-Maghrib board meeting, 22 September 2026; Bank Al-Maghrib, exchange rate regime; High Commission for Planning, note de conjoncture, 14 October 2026; High Commission for Planning, 2024 census population; Médias24 on HCP 2025 national accounts; Ministry of Equipment and Water, maaDialna dam data; Le Matin, dam levels, 13 October 2026; Proclamation 11038, Federal Register; US Commerce Department, preliminary sunset review; US International Trade Commission, review schedule; Sound Energy half-year report, 17 September 2026; Chariot 2025 results, 30 June 2026; Hespress on Tendrara first gas; Médias24 on gas imports; Yabiladi on renewables; Médias24 on desalination targets; Hespress on desalination targets; Le360 on the Casablanca desalination plant; TelQuel on Afriquia Gaz; Morocco World News on ONP fisheries data; EU Court of Justice press release 170/24; UN Security Council, Resolution 2797; Government of Morocco portal; UNESCO, Arganeraie biosphere reserve; Managem; USTR, US-Morocco FTA; open.er-api.com exchange rates; Polymarket displayed price, 15 October 2026, 8:29 a.m. ET (all accessed 15 October 2026).

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