Roadmap to exchange renewable energy between Morocco and Europe: COP 22

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Reddit
Email
The exchange  could help relieve the challenges of grid congestion and curtailment of renewable energy. Credit: EC

Four European countries have signed a joint agreement to establish a roadmap for exchanging electricity from renewable sources between Morocco and Europe.

Germany, Spain, France and Portugal all signed the non-legally binding statement to support the programme, while in the presence of the European Commission at COP22 in Marrakech.

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Unlock unlimited access for 12 whole months of distinctive global analysis

Photovoltaics International is now included.

  • Regular insight and analysis of the industry’s biggest developments
  • In-depth interviews with the industry’s leading figures
  • Unlimited digital access to the PV Tech Power journal catalogue
  • Unlimited digital access to the Photovoltaics International journal catalogue
  • Access to more than 1,000 technical papers
  • Discounts on Solar Media’s portfolio of events, in-person and virtual

Or continue reading this article for free

The signatories will support the SET Roadmap to review economic, legal, regulatory and technical issues relating to the energy exchange, particularly looking at potential grid bottlenecks.

While Morocco has strong renewable resources, exchange of energy betwee the continents could provide mutually-beneficial investment opportunities for all the parties involved as well as generating a significant number of jobs. Electricity market integration between the MENA region and Europe could help relieve the challenges of grid congestion and curtailment of renewable energy.

The Moroccan and the European Union electricity grid are already partially interconnected through Spain. This is expected to be strengthened further through a new interconnection with Portugal.

The Moroccan Agency for Solar Energy (MASEN) was appointed Secretary of the Steering Committee of the project.

It is hoped that completion of the SET roadmap will result in the four European nations being able to sign an implementable agreement in time for the COP23 conference, which will be held in Asia next year.

The initiative comes partly as a result of the Paris Agreement last November, under which developed countries are expected to provide financial support to developing countries to help implement their emissions reductions.

Morocco is implementing the Moroccan Renewable Energy Plan, led by MASEN, with an ambitious target of 52% by 2030. It is already benefiting from support from various donor sources including the EU Neighbourhood Investment Facility and the Clean Technology Fund (of which France, Germany, Spain and Morocco are members), but these sources are limited.

The European countries are also hoping to achieve the renewables targets of the EU's Renewable Energy Directive. The EU has agreed on a binding target for renewables energies of 27% by 2030.

26 November 2024
Málaga, Spain
Understanding PV module supply to the European market in 2025. PV ModuleTech Europe 2024 is a two-day conference that tackles these challenges directly, with an agenda that addresses all aspects of module supplier selection; product availability, technology offerings, traceability of supply-chain, factory auditing, module testing and reliability, and company bankability.

Read Next

Subscribe to Newsletter

Upcoming Events

Solar Media Events
April 10, 2024
Dallas, Texas USA
Solar Media Events
April 17, 2024
Lisbon, Portugal
Solar Media Events
May 1, 2024
Dallas, Texas
Solar Media Events
May 21, 2024
Napa, USA