Morocco and Spain have agreed to implement a previously-signed Memorandum of Understanding relating to the establishment of a third electricity cable between the two countries.
Morocco’s National Electricity and Drinking Water Office (ONEE) and Spain’s national electricity organization, Red Electrica, will work together on the project.
The Moroccan Ministry of Energy, Mines, and Environment announced the news today after a meeting between Morocco’s Minister of Energy, Aziz Rabbah, and Spain’s Minister for Ecological Transition and Fourth Deputy Prime Minister, Teresa Ribera.
The meeting took place last week on November 12 via videoconference with the participation of Amina Benkhadra, the director of the National Office of Hydrocarbons and Mines, and ONEE Director Abderrahim El Hafidi.
Two electricity cables currently link Morocco and its northern neighbor. In 2019, Morocco’s electricity exports to Spain exceeded 1,207 Gigawatt hours (GWh), consolidating the North African country’s position as a net exporter of electricity.
Read also: Morocco Remains Net Exporter of Electricity
Along with the upcoming electricity interconnection project, Rabbah and Ribera discussed bilateral cooperation in the fields of natural gas and hydrogen.
Regarding natural gas, the two ministers affirmed their will to establish a framework for the trade of natural gas between Morocco and Spain, in both directions, and to accelerate the ongoing joint studies on the project. They urged the operators in charge of the project to accelerate its implementation.
As for hydrogen, the officials suggested discussions between Moroccan and Spanish organizations operating in the field to examine the different possibilities of cooperation.
During the meeting, Rabbah and Ribera also agreed to establish an Energy Partnership Committee to examine bilateral cooperation in the field of energy. The committee is set to hold its first meeting in the coming weeks.
The recent meeting is part of regular consultations between Morocco and Spain, which not only concerns bilateral relations but also the electricity and energy connection between Europe and Africa. The last consultative meeting between the two countries took place in June.
