Having traveled to Glasgow to attend COP26, the new Moroccan Prime Minister Aziz Akhannouch announced a strengthening of the kingdom’s climate ambitions.
The Moroccan authorities have set themselves the objective of reducing greenhouse gases by 45.5% by 2030 and quickly reaching 52% of sustainable electricity. To date, 37% of the electric power in Morocco is generated by renewable energies.
The kingdom, which hosted the COP22 in 2016, still wants to be at the forefront of the fight against global warming. In Glasgow, Morocco announced that it was working on 50 renewable energy projects with an installed capacity of 3,950 MW – the equivalent of 3 to 4 nuclear reactors. The country, poorly endowed with oil and gas, already produces more than 4,000 megawatts of wind and solar energy, a benchmark in the field in Africa. The share of renewable energies could thus exceed 60% in 2030.
The Prime Minister wants to put the turbo on research in the sectors of hydrogen, energy efficiency of buildings, smart grids (electricity network optimizing thanks to digital electricity distribution and consumption) and electric mobility, optimization of water and energy. In addition, the capture of rainwater for consumption, irrigation and dams also remain a vital concern of the kingdom.
“In line with Morocco’s efforts and with a view to accelerating the energy transition, several measures are being taken to develop biomass-energy, marine energies and hydrogen”
Aziz Akhannouch, Prime Minister of Moroccoat Bladi.net
Morocco is a pioneer with its Noor Ouarzazate solar power plant with a capacity of 580 MW launched in 2009, one of the largest in the world. It supplies electricity to more than a million households and reduces greenhouse gas emissions injected into the air by one million tonnes per year.
Morocco is now ranked best African student and fourth in the world by the International Climate Action Network and the New Climate Institute in the 2021 Climate Performance Index. A model closely scrutinized by all of sub-Saharan Africa.