The National Railways Office (ONCF) expects a turnover of 3.5 billion dirhams for the 2021 financial year, against 2.8 billion dirhams in 2020, the Director General of the Office said on Friday. , Mohamed Rabie Khlie.
Speaking at the ONCF Board of Directors, held in videoconference mode under the chairmanship of the Minister of Transport and Logistics, Mohammed Abdeljalil, Mohamed Rabie Khlie explained that “thanks to the good recovery of passenger activity and the resilience of goods transport activities, the Office plans to achieve a turnover of 3.5 billion dirhams in 2021 against 2.8 billion dirhams in 2020, an increase of 25%”, reports a press release from the ONCF. Returning to the behavior of the various activities of the Office during the year 2021, he specified that the Passenger activity experienced a remarkable recovery compared to 2020, he added during this meeting. The forecasts at the end of December show an exponential rebound in all the indicators: the number of passengers improved by +64%, going from 21.1 million in 2020 to 34.5 million in 2021, and the turnover increased by +87%, reaching 1.5 billion dirhams in 2021 against 803 million dirhams (MDH) in 2020.
To cite only Al Boraq, which completed its 3rd year of operation last November, it counted in 2021, +100% of new followers by transporting 2.4 million passengers, against 1.3 million travelers in 2020 and the turnover generated followed the same trend, standing at 317 MDH in 2021 against 165 MDH in 2020 (i.e. +100%). As for freight and phosphate rail transport, despite the horrors of the health crisis, it has been able to demonstrate a lot of resilience and overall in 2021 marked a sustained improvement in its indicators. Recording more than 25.5 million tonnes of goods transported during 2021, i.e. +2.6% compared to 2020, it generated a turnover of 1.8 billion dirhams i.e. +2.3% compared to 2020 Thus, all the financial indicators, probable as of December 31, 2021, are displayed in green.
In addition, the Director General of ONCF recalled that despite the ongoing health crisis, the year 2021 was marked by a revival of rail activity, thanks in particular to the proactive and proactive strategy of the ‘Office.
In this sense, ONCF has been able to readjust its strategy to better promote this revival, based on the acceleration of digital transformation, the revitalization of key activities, the strengthening of the synergy of the ONCF Group, the promotion of an ecosystem around rail and the renovation of the industrial value chain. Similarly, in 2021, ONCF made investments for an amount of 1.6 billion dirhams, limited to the completion of ongoing operations and priority projects to maintain security and quality of service.
With regard to the 2022 budgets, the Director General of ONCF recalled that they were drawn up in line with the orientations of the public authorities, and with a view to post-health crisis economic recovery. The Office is thus in line with the performance recorded in 2021, with a turnover target of 3.8 billion dirhams, up +9% compared to 2021, correlated with the normal resumption of activity. Travelers. ONCF will also continue its investment effort by activating the various projects necessary to maintain performance, and by accelerating studies relating to development projects.
In the register of the State-ONCF Memorandum of Understanding, ratified in July 2019, significant progress has been made by ONCF and its stakeholders in the deployment of the various agreed projects, in particular for the implementation of a new economic model. , able to sustain the performance of ONCF and ensure the development of the Moroccan rail network. The Office will continue its actions with a view to concretizing its institutional transformation, in accordance with the guidelines adopted for the reform of public establishments and enterprises.
In addition, the Director General of ONCF recalled the place of choice occupied by rail today, and its promising prospects as a mode of mass transport, offering a sober, ecological and sustainable mobility solution. Rail remains one of the vectors of economic recovery as an immeasurable tool for regional planning.
On the strength of this observation, the Office is called, more than ever, to seize the opportunity of its development plan, to be a catalyst for the emergence of a national railway ecosystem with a strong technological component, integrated around operators public and private, structuring, creator of economic and social value, competitive and exportable.
Before concluding, Mr. Khlie underlined that the ONCF began the year 2022 by initiating its green energy transition, with all of its Al Boraq trains now running on clean wind energy, before gradually expanding this choice to its entire fleet. The office thus reinforces its commitment and its strong mobilization in the promotion and development of inclusive, sustainable and efficient mobility. At the end of the session, the members of the Board of Directors congratulated all the employees of the Office for the commendable efforts made to achieve the objectives and the effective contribution to the anticipation of sustainable mobility. They also sent a message of fidelity and loyalty to HM King Mohammed VI May God Assist Him.
The work of this session was devoted to the examination of the probable results of the 2021 financial year and the approval of the 2022 budgets, the presentation of the progress of the projects included in the State-ONCF Memorandum of Understanding, as well as the presentation of railway development projects and the establishment of a national railway industrial ecosystem.
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