Except for some minor damage to some equipment at the “Noor Ouarzazate” power plant which has been repaired, all energy installations are operating normally, the ministry stressed in a statement, noting that nuclear installations have not been impacted.
As for mining activities in the provinces of Al Haouz and Taroudant, they have not experienced any fundamental changes following the earthquake. Technical cells have been set up in coordination with the mining companies concerned to assess and limit possible damage and risks, through the monitoring of the various underground mining operations as well as their surface facilities, the same source said.
In this regard, the Ministry stressed the routine nature of underground exploration and extraction activities in accordance with the specifications of exploration and mining companies, which require compliance with environmental assessments and strict safety and environmental standards.
The ministry also reviewed the situation of oil storage and distribution infrastructure, particularly in the earthquake-affected areas, noting that with the exception of some gas stations that suffered minor damage, other facilities were undamaged. No shortage of energy products, including diesel, gasoline, butane gas and aviation fuel, was recorded.
In this context, the ministry’s services have rigorously monitored the process of arrival of tanker trucks in the affected areas in order to maintain the stock and ensure the supply of these areas in the best conditions and continuously.
According to the press release, the Ministry of Energy Transition and Sustainable Development set up a crisis unit in coordination with the institutions under its supervision in the first hours following the earthquake.
Work teams were thus sent to the affected areas to inspect the state of energy infrastructure and the supply of energy products in order to assess the damage, verify the performance of these installations and take the necessary measures to restore the situation to normal as soon as possible, including through the mobilization of energy and mining companies to contribute to the opening up of the disaster-stricken regions.
In this context, the teams of the institutions under the supervision of the ministry mobilized to identify the various damages that affected the distribution network and restore medium voltage current in all the electrical distribution stations in the province of Al Haouz, and isolate the cables carrying electricity and the damaged low voltage networks, which risk representing a danger for the population.
Thus, these teams were able to gradually restore power supply in all affected areas and restore public lighting, while the teams of the National Office of Electricity and Drinking Water (ONEE) continue to monitor and track the performance of all electrical installations in the region’s distribution network continuously and in real time.
Furthermore, and in order to enlighten the national public opinion on the earthquake, the geology department, in its capacity as the national geological service, held a working meeting with a committee of experts in order to study the geo-scientific aspects of the Al Haouz earthquake and its effects on the region, the statement said, adding that the committee of experts thus issued a series of recommendations, in particular the need to review the distribution map of seismic zones of the law relating to earthquake-resistant constructions, and to make its data available to decision-makers and rural municipalities during the various stages of reconstruction of the affected areas.
On the other hand, following the field missions of the ministry’s services regarding the environmental situation of the affected areas, particularly with regard to solid and liquid waste and their impact on the population in accommodation centers, the minister, accompanied by representatives of local authorities and ministry officials, made a field visit to some affected areas in the Marrakech region, in order to assess the situation and the urgent needs of the populations, with a view to implementing the general program for the reconstruction and rehabilitation of the areas affected by the Al Haouz earthquake in accordance with the High Royal Instructions, the statement said.
The minister also visited the earthquake-resistant rural housing project, developed by the Moroccan Agency for Energy Efficiency (AMEE) in the province of Marrakech.
The ministry’s services remain mobilized to work in consultation with all stakeholders in order to meet the needs of the affected populations and to support the vast program of reconstruction and general rehabilitation of the disaster areas, launched at the initiative of His Majesty the King, may God assist him, and which the Sovereign wanted as a model of integrated and balanced territorial development, concludes the same source.
2024-08-15 09:48:09