Moroccan distributors say 435,000 fewer 12-kilogram (26-pound) butane cylinders than usual reached shops in the past three days, after an import terminal near Mohammedia stopped unloading. National deliveries have fallen from about 420,000 cylinders a day to 275,000, according to figures shared by the trade ministry on Thursday.
The stoppage began on Monday, when a scheduled pressure check found a cracked coupling at the terminal’s west jetty. The berth handles about 38% of the country’s imported butane, and a 19,000-tonne (20,944-short-ton) cargo remains on its vessel while repairs are assessed. A second ship has missed its planned unloading slot.
A berth failure reaches kitchens
At a depot on the edge of Salé, shopkeepers queued before noon on Thursday as a delivery truck arrived with fewer than half its usual load. Marisa S. De Santis, who runs a small grocery nearby, said customers had been asking for cylinders since dawn. “People come back twice in one day, and I have nothing to hand them,” she said.
The official price for a 12kg cylinder remains 50 Moroccan dirhams (about €4.70), but shopkeepers and consumers reported informal offers of 95 to 120 dirhams. The government says the price is controlled; distributors say the gap reflects panic buying and the cost of finding stock outside their usual routes.
Indris Arājs-Lielais, a commodities analyst at the fictional Rabat-based firm North Gate Markets, warned that the shortage could travel beyond kitchens. Small bakeries, food processors and workshops that rely on bottled gas have little room to absorb a sudden jump in supply costs, he said. “If the berth is not pumping by Sunday, we lose the buffer that keeps the price stable.”
If the berth is not pumping by Sunday, we lose the buffer that keeps the price stable.
Indris Arājs-Lielais, commodities analyst
The price shield under pressure
The government has ordered distributors to reroute trucks from inland storage and says there is enough commercial stock to cover the next several days. That may prevent an immediate national shutdown, but moving cylinders across the country takes time, and dealers in several cities say their next delivery dates remain uncertain.
Rene Stevens, a spokesperson for Tadla Energy Supply, said the company had diverted trucks and expected to restore regular deliveries in stages. The terminal operator has not given a firm reopening time. A prolonged delay would force suppliers to buy replacement cargoes on short notice, a costly move that could squeeze smaller distributors first.
Economist Joonatan Suutarinen said the shortage exposes a structural weakness: low official prices protect household budgets, but can leave the market with little flexibility when imports stall. Morocco relies heavily on bottled gas for cooking, especially beyond major urban centres. “A three-day disruption is manageable; a two-week one becomes a test of the whole distribution chain,” he said.
The terminal’s repair schedule and the arrival of the next cargo now matter more than the ministry’s assurances, analysts said. If unloading resumes by Sunday, deliveries could recover over the following week. If it does not, the government may face pressure to find more stock quickly or explain why a single berth has left so many retailers short.
