Rabat – Russian news agency TASS reported on Wednesday that Russia approved the nuclear cooperation agreement which it had signed with Morocco in 2017.
In line with Morocco’s strategy to prioritize greener energy, the cooperative agreement will help the country produce electricity from nuclear energy, and be less dependent on energy imports.
The agreement was negotiated by the Russian state-run company Rosatom, which specializes in nuclear energy.
With over 300 enterprises under its wing, the Russian company employs more than 250,000 people.
According to the Russian press, the agreement concerns at least 14 sectors, including the creation and improvement of Morocco’s nuclear infrastructure, designing and creating nuclear reactors, and exploring and developing uranium deposits.
Through this cooperation, Russia seeks to help Morocco with creating water desalination plants and elementary particle accelerators, as well as boosting research on mineral resources available in the country.
Thanks to its expertise in the sector, Russia will provide Morocco with support in terms of the management of nuclear fuel and radioactive waste, as nuclear reactors are powerful and can be environmentally destructive if they are not well managed.
Morocco is considered a regional and international leader in the field of renewable energies, making the potential implementation of nuclear energy in the country notable.
Despite skepticism surrounding the potential dangers and costs of nuclear energy, it is still gaining steam as a potentially major source of clean energy.
Given good management and oversight, nuclear facilities can produce clean and sustainable energy, but their extensive use of water resources and the worry of nuclear proliferation continue to be points of contention for its critics.
