Buyer walks away from Morocco’s Samir refinery

Hopes that the country’s only refining facility might re-open are dealt a blow

London-based infrastructure project financer Elite Capital has told the Moroccan court responsible for the insolvent Samir refinery that it is breaking off talks, ongoing since 2018, to buy the shuttered plant. The 2mn bl/d refinery is Morocco’s only such facility, meaning its closure has left the North African state entirely dependent on refined product imports. It has been shut-in since August 2016, says Elite Capital, while court-appointed experts value the unit at MAD21.6bn ($2.1bn). Faisal Khazaal, Elite Capital’s Kuwaiti chairman, cites a “flaw” in the proposed deal as the motivation for walking away from what he terms “marathon negotiations”. Dubai’s Tabarak Investment Capital investm