Rabat – The National Office of Hydrocarbons and Mines (ONHYM) and the National Office of Electricity and Drinking Water (ONEE) signed on Monday an agreement on natural gas transportation.
The contract supplies gas to ONEE’s gas-fired power plants via the Maghreb Europe Gas Pipeline. Morocco has been using this pipeline to secure its gas supply.
The agreement formalizes the collaboration between the two offices, enabling a system to allow for the importation of liquefied natural gas purchased on the international market, unloaded and regasified at Spanish terminals before being transported to Morocco via the pipeline.
A statement from ONHYM said both the offices’ directors expressed satisfaction with the ongoing coordination between their teams and the quality of service provided by ONHYM through its subsidiary.
The Spanish news agency reported earlier this year that Morocco became the top destination for gas exports from Spain for the first time in history, accounting for 28% of all monthly exports.
Algeria ended a contract for the pipeline with Morocco in October 2021, a few months after its decision to cut diplomatic ties with Rabat.
To mitigate the situation, Morocco announced it would enter the international Natural Liquified Gas market, reassuring citizens that Algeria’s decision to end the pipeline contract will not impact its demand.
In 2022, Minister of Energy Leila Benali said Morocco is resorting to other measures, including liquefied natural gas to meet its energy demands.
In August, Spanish news outlet Vozpópuli said that Spain has significantly increased its natural gas exports to Morocco over the past year.
Gas exports to Morocco now account for 18.5% of Spain’s total gas exports as of June 2024, up from just 0.1% in June 2022, according to data from Cores.
