On September 21 2026, the last batch of high-speed railway turnouts for Morocco, developed by China Railway Shanhaiguan Bridge Group Co., Ltd. (CRSBG), departed from Qinhuangdao, Hebei Province. This marks the first systematic integrated export of China’s high-speed turnout manufacturing technology to Africa, another major step forward for China’s railway turnout technology going global.

575 turnouts: China secures the largest-ever overseas turnout order

The finished turnouts for Morocco are being hoisted onto transport trucks

The Kenitra–Marrakech High-Speed Railway in Morocco stretches 430 kilometres with a designed speed of 350 km/h. As a key component of Morocco’s north-south transport corridor, it passes through major cities including Rabat, Salé and Casablanca. Built mainly to meet transport support requirements for the 2030 FIFA World Cup in Morocco, the line is scheduled to open to traffic at the end of 2029.

The Morocco turnout project of CRSBG comprises 575 sets of turnouts, the largest overseas project by single contract value awarded to a Chinese turnout manufacturer. Deliveries to Morocco are arranged in four batches. The first batch of 80 turnouts was shipped in November 2025, and this shipment of the last 111 turnouts signals full completion of project delivery. On-site installation of the first batch was completed in Morocco in April 2026.

“CRSBG provides reliable supply of high-quality turnouts. The on-site installation was achieved on the first attempt, keeping the project well on schedule. The turnouts have been operating smoothly since the opening of the Marrakech advance section,” commented by El Houssaine Fara, Employer’s Representative of ONCF for the Kenitra–Marrakech High Speed Railway.

Full-chain Integrated Export

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This systematic integrated export of high-speed railway turnouts to Morocco breaks the model of single-product export. It delivers full-chain integrated output covering turnout technology, manufacturing techniques, quality control and local procurement, serving as a benchmark project marking the first full implementation of China’s high-speed turnouts in Africa.

★Self-developed intelligent manufacturing equipment and a brand-new complete process system. Equipped with customized special cutting tools, the line realizes integrated NC and standardized machining and production of all rail components, fully meeting the high requirements of track smoothness, ride performance and operational stability that high-speed lines impose on turnouts.

★The automated AI inspection system safeguards quality. Independently developed by CRSBG, the automated AI inspection system for turnouts features high detection accuracy and high efficiency with excellent overall operational reliability, providing a solid guarantee for product quality.

★Integrated assembly and shipment deliver gains in both efficiency and quality. The turnout products for this export adopt the integrated assembly and shipment scheme for switches and sleepers, which not only markedly improves the on-site laying quality of turnouts, but also raises assembly efficiency by 30% and cuts the construction schedule by 15%.

Chinese turnouts stride onto the global market

Since manufacturing China’s first turnout in 1912, CRSBG has consistently spearheaded the development of railway turnouts in China. Starting with the Jakarta–Bandung High-Speed Railway, which marked the first systematic integrated export of China’s high-speed turnouts; followed by the Budapest–Belgrade Railway, delivering the first systematic integrated export of China’s high-speed turnouts to Europe; and now this Morocco project, achieving the first export of China’s high-speed turnouts to Africa, CRSBG is fostering new-quality productive forces through smart manufacturing and continuously advancing the global adoption of Chinese railway turnout standards.

Once completed, the Kenitra–Marrakech High-Speed Railway in Morocco will greatly improve transport efficiency between major Moroccan cities and provide solid transport support for the 2030 World Cup. With the in-depth implementation of the Belt and Road Initiative, China’s industrial manufacturing sector will further go global, contributing Chinese wisdom and Chinese solutions to the development of global rail transit.