Operators Maroc Telecom and Inwi have asked Morocco’s telecom regulator to approve a shared infrastructure plan first proposed earlier this year.

The joint proposal to the National Telecommunications Regulatory Agency (ANRT) seeks approval to share telecommunications infrastructure. 

The proposal would involve the creation of two new companies. FiberCo, as it would be called, would focus on building and expanding the passive optical fibre network to accelerate fibre to the home (FTTH) deployment nationwide.

The second company, TowerCo, would be responsible for constructing and upgrading telecom towers to support 5G rollout and growing mobile demand.

The initiative, if approved, could significantly reshape Morocco’s digital development landscape, so, not surprisingly, ANRT has launched a public consultation, open until 30 May, inviting input from industry stakeholders. The regulator will evaluate whether the proposed collaboration might distort market dynamics.

The proposal includes making the shared infrastructure accessible to other operators. However, any terms, conditions, and pricing related to such access have not been detailed.

News agency Ecofin says that Maroc Telecom has previously faced scrutiny for restricting competitors’ access to its fixed-line infrastructure.

Of course, even if ANRT approves the initiative, this would not guarantee its implementation; there may be competitive implications involving other regulatory bodies.

As we noted in late March, the first phase of the project alone is valued at MAD4.4 billion (close to US$457 million) over three years.