SAMIR refinery shutdown causes major economic losses in Morocco

Hussein El Yamani, Secretary General of the National Union of Petroleum and Gas, has characterized the continued shutdown of the SAMIR refinery as one of the greatest losses to the Moroccan national economy.

At full capacity, the refinery could produce over 4 billion liters of diesel annually, along with gasoline, naphtha, jet fuel, industrial fuel, and asphalt. El Yamani estimates that due to unprecedented global refining margins, the company could have generated annual profits of approximately 24 billion dirhams from diesel refining alone—a figure exceeding the 21 billion dirham judicial sale price set in 2016.

The union leader attributed the current situation to opaque privatization processes, what he described as ‘orchestrated bankruptcy’ by the former owner, and a lack of decisive political action from successive governments. He argued that the suspension of refining has allowed distributors to dominate the local market while consumers face high diesel prices, which have exceeded 16 dirhams per liter. El Yamani called for a major political decision to resume petroleum refining in Morocco to secure national energy needs and protect consumer purchasing power amidst global geopolitical instability.