Samir’s trustee has been granted another three months to complete the liquidation process and invite expressions of interest in purchasing the plant in the coming days by a Moroccan court.

According to the trustee, Mohamed El-Krimi, the court has successfully approved his request for an extension to the deadline for the completion of the liquidation process for another three months.

“We asked only for three months as we will invite investors to submit expression of interests in the coming days, likely in a week,” El-Krimi said.

A court ruling had granted the new management team until December 21 to reopen the refinery in a bid to find a buyer and a better price.

The country's 200,000 barrels a day only oil refinery was shut down in August because of financial difficulties and a court ruling then, placed it in liquidation and named an independent trustee to control it.

Samir’s closure had the North African depend on oil product imports at a time when it is looking to get its finances back on track by confronting huge budget deficits.

Efforts to resume production before looking for a buyer have been hindered by the difficulties in searching for a supply of crude oil.

The court has been trying to assess the company's assets and debt since 2015, when a judge placed it in liquidation, Reuters reports.

Anita Fatunji