LIBREVILLE, December 5, 2024 (AGP) – the reform of the National Electricity Regulatory Authority (ANRE), driven by His Majesty King Mohammed VI, is a concrete sign of national and institutional maturity on specific issues of the energy sector, according too Hicham Kasraoui, expert in economic and energy development strategies, based in Paris, informs the MAP.
“Beyond the appointment of a new president of this national authority, it is indeed above all the new reform of the energy regulator, initiated by His Majesty the King, which deserves particular attention,” he declared, explaining that energy is frequently enough described as the “backbone” of the economy as it is, on the one hand, a powerful lever of industrial competitiveness and, conversely, a strategic vector of sovereignty and influence.
The consultant noted that through this reform, “Morocco today confirms that it is aware of the centrality of the energy issue for its economic development model”.
On the international level, he deciphers, the global energy market is experiencing today and will continue to experience major upheavals in the coming years as part of the ongoing energy transition: more innovations to produce competitive and low-carbon energies, more regulations to certify the renewable origin of energies (the famous guarantees of origin), more technologies to manage bright energy networks (smart grids), more financial-climate issues with the introduction of carbon credits in business plans for new energy projects, etc.
On the other hand,at the national level,he underlined: “It is essential and structuring that Morocco equips itself with a regulator not only mature on these issues but above all capable of getting ahead of the evolution of the sector and preparing the regulatory framework conducive to achieving the Kingdom’s energy ambitions,both quantitatively and qualitatively. »
One of the major points of the reform initiated by His Majesty the King, he affirmed, is the expansion of the scope of the ANRE from only electrical energy to all forms of energy vectors, whether they are electrons (electricity) or molecules (gas, hydrogen). This is a concrete sign of national and institutional maturity on the specific challenges of the energy sector.According to him, these are signs that global energy operators will not fail to pick up on. “This is highly likely to further encourage them to continue and accelerate their investments in Morocco, thus strengthening its role as a leading regional energy connector,” he added.
As a reminder, the Sovereign chaired a Council of Ministers on Wednesday in Rabat during which he appointed Zouhair Chorfi, president of the National Electricity Regulatory Authority (ANRE).
In this regard, the King gave his high directives with a view to looking into an overhaul of this body with a view to its change into a national regulatory authority for the energy sector, through the revision of the relevant law, the expansion of its remit to encompass, in addition to electricity, all components of the energy sector, namely: natural gas, new energies such as hydrogen and its derivatives, as well as areas of production, storage, transportation and distribution, in order to be in line with the level of maturity that the energy sector has reached in our country, and in compliance with international best practices in this area.
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