Sahara, a pillar of energy corridor linking Africa and Europe

The Atlantic Sahara is called upon to become a strategic corridor of connectivity and opening-up between two continents,Africa and Europe thanks to the major energy projects launched under the impetus of King Mohammed VI.

The remarks were made by Minister of Energy Transition and Sustainable Development,Leila Benali,in Dakhla on Friday,in a keynote address at the Maroc Diplomatique Sahara Forum,held under the theme “The Atlantic Sahara,a corridor for opening up and connectivity between two continents.”

Benali announced that Morocco is “on the verge of the effective launch of its sovereign gas infrastructure.” This infrastructure includes the Nador West Med gas import terminal as well as the gas pipelines intended to connect the North and Center of the country (Tangier,Kenitra,Mohammedia) to the major industrial and electricity hubs.

The official pointed out that this infrastructure will connect to the first phase of the Africa-Atlantic Gas Pipeline,formerly the Nigeria-Morocco Gas Pipeline,which was renamed last December by a joint decision of the concerned African ministers.

“This gas pipeline is not a simple pipe: it is an instrument of economic and social integration between North Africa and West Africa,and a lever for regional opening up,” she affirmed.

She also highlighted the development of the Morocco-Mauritania electrical interconnection,which will promote security of supply,electricity exchanges,and the creation of a structured regional energy market along the Atlantic corridor.

This dynamic is in addition to the strengthening of the Morocco-Spain,Morocco-Portugal,and Morocco-France interconnections,as well as the future North-South High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) lines,consolidating the Kingdom’s position as a “true energy corridor between Africa and Europe.”

Benali also recalled the strategic role of the OTC (Origination,Transit,and Certification) corridor,which will be formalized on November 24 during the Morocco International Mining Congress.

Referring to the energy potential of the southern provinces,the minister stressed that they already have more than 1.5 GW of installed capacity in renewable energy,representing an investment exceeding 20 billion dirhams.

The current plan forecasts an additional 1.5 GW by 2030,requiring the construction,in less than five years,of capacities greater than those established during the last twenty years,she indicated.

The Moroccan Sahara will fully reclaim its millennial vocation as a “crossroads of connectivity and exchange between the North and the South,from Tangier to Port Harcourt,serving shared and sustainable development,” she affirmed.