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Join on Telegram Rabat – The Moroccan Ministry of Energy is currently exploring the possibility of launching a Floating Storage Regasification Unit (FSRU) off the Atlantic coast in the coming years.
The Moroccan Minister of Energy, Aziz Rabbah, just launched a call for expressions of interest (CEI) for the design and installation of an FSRU, a ship or an offshore installation, which is a vital component for transporting Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG).
The CEI aims to identify the companies that work in the development of FSRUs as well as to potentially launch a call for tenders or to form a public-private partnership (PPP).
The event “invites companies to express their interest to participate… in a call for tenders for the development, design, financing, construction, operation and maintenance of the [FSRU],” the ministry said in a statement. To participate in the initiative, companies will have to “confirm their intentions and capacities” to develop and deliver the project by 2025, added the statement.
Among the list of potential sites for the regasification unit are the ports of Nador West Med, Kenitra Atlantique, Jorf Lasfar, and Mohammedia, the ministry noted.
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In terms of technical specifications, “the proposed project must meet the need for a natural gas market to be developed gradually.”
The ministry has estimated the LNG market will need approximately 1.1 billion cubic meters, including 0.6 billion cubic meters for the industrial sector by 2025.
By 2030, meanwhile, projections are set at approximately 1.7 billion cubic meters for the market, including 0.7 billion for industry. A decade later, expectations are for the needs to rise to 3 billion cubic meters, of which 1.4 will be earmarked for industrial use.
Besides the FSRU’s capacity, the ministry also noted that the regasification project must be compatible with the maritime infrastructures of the receiving terminal of the chosen port.
It specified, however, that the regasification system must meet the needs and technical constraints of local distributors and consumers of natural gas.
The CEI comes at a time when “The energy sector is undergoing extremely significant changes economically, technically and geopolitically,” notes the ministry’s press release.
While Morocco is currently a net energy importer, it faces a wide range of limitations, such as diversification, security of supply, the competitiveness of its economy, and the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.
