Morocco, Spain underwater tunnel unlikely for 2030 World Cup

The long-awaited tunnel connecting Spain and Morocco beneath the Strait of Gibraltar will likely not be ready in time for the 2030 World Cup, which the two nations, along with Portugal, are co-hosting.

Planned to link Spain’s Punta Paloma with Morocco’s Punta Malabata, the project now faces a decade-long delay after initial research uncovered unforeseen geological challenges that will, most likely, postpone its inauguration to 2040.

“The conditions are much more complex than expected,” Spanish Minister of Transport, Óscar Puente, acknowledged in an interview this week.

The tunnel’s design includes a first phase with a single rail tunnel, in which both AVE and freight trains will travel in both directions. Then, a second phase will involve the construction of a second tunnel to allow for one tunnel for each direction.

Spanish and Moroccan authorities, including the Spanish Society for the Study of Fixed Communications in the Strait of Gibraltar (Secegsa) and its Moroccan counterpart, the National Society for Studies of the Strait of Gibraltar (SNED), are collaborating to bring the tunnel to fruition.

Inspired by the Channel Tunnel connecting France and the UK, it would feature a 38.5km-long tunnel, of which 28km would be under the sea at depths of 175m to 475m below sea level. 

At its narrowest point, the distance between Morocco and Spain across the Strait of Gibraltar is just 13km, although geological and topographical factors mean Secegsa has proposed a longer route. 

In Morocco, it would surface close to the port city of Tangiers, while its Spanish terminal would be in the south in the province of Cadiz, in a sparsely populated area.

In late 2024, Secegsa signed a $500,000 contract to rent four seafloor seismometers with private company Tekpam Ingeniería, though local media reports that the Royal Institute and Observatory of the Navy intervened, forcing the cancellation of the deal for security reasons.

The Spanish Navy will now oversee seismic monitoring from April to September 2025 when conditions in the Strait are most favorable.

Meanwhile, Herrenknecht Ibérica, a subsidiary of the German multinational, has spent the past two months evaluating the feasibility of drilling through the Camarinal Threshold—a section more than 30 kilometres long and several hundred meters deep. 

The company, known for its work on the M-30 tunnels in Madrid and the Bosphorus underwater crossing, sees the Gibraltar tunnel as a potential game-changer for transporting goods and passengers between North Africa and Europe. 

“A tunnel in the Strait of Gibraltar would significantly increase the efficiency of goods and passenger transport between North Africa and Europe,” Herrenknecht representatives told Spanish media on 27 January.

However, the $300,000 contract with Herrenknecht only covers a feasibility study, with no construction or machinery involved.

The study is set to conclude in July 2025 and will determine whether the technical hurdles of the project are surmountable. The project could exceed a total cost of $15 billion.

Tunnel’s deadline: 2030 or 2040?

The research company does not wish to go into detail because its contract includes confidentiality clauses.

Secegsa, the Spanish Ministry of Transport and Moroccan officials also prefer not to give away details on this historic project.

However, experts, who are sceptical about the tunnel’s feasibility, argue that if there is any hope of moving forward, given the scope of the project and the fact that only preliminary studies have been completed, the tunnel’s debut will likely be closer to the 2040s.

“What have been done so far is limited. We still don’t have confirmed information about the budget, sponsoring, nor a confirmed construction plan,” says Moroccan expert Ahmed Zaher who expects the tunnel not to be still in the construction phase amid the international football tournament.

Morocco and Spain have been mulling over how to create a fixed connection between the two continents—either a tunnel or a bridge—since at least 1980.

In 1988, both governments began exploring the idea, and by 1991, they had formed a joint commission to assess the technical, financial, and environmental challenges.

While talks continued, including a renewed commitment in 2007, progress was stalled by disagreements over issues like territory and migration.

However, after a thaw in relations following a controversial migration agreement in 2022, Madrid and Rabat have signalled their intention to move ahead with the project.

Despite experts’ doubts, both governments are hopeful that the tunnel will be ready in time for the 2030 World Cup, allowing fans to travel easily between Morocco and Spain to attend matches hosted across the three countries.