Morocco and Portugal have signed
a joint declaration on an electricity interconnection project. The project aims to reinforce renewable energy development strategies and promote energy exchange between African and European continents.
The declaration was signed by Morocco’s Minister of Energy Transition and Sustainable Development, Leila Benali, and Portugal’s Minister of Environment and Climate Action, Duarte Cordeiro, on the sidelines of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP28) in Dubai.
The project will also promote dialogue to ensure a resilient and inclusive energy transition that meets global objectives in sustainable development and climate change. This includes encouraging the use of renewable energies and accelerating the implementation of strategic projects of common interest, such as the electricity interconnection project between the two countries.
Morocco’s Minister stated that implementing the electricity interconnection project is important for both European and African continents. She added that signing this joint declaration aims to update the technical studies and the financial cost of this project at the global level.
Portugal’s Minister of Environment and Climate Action stressed that the two countries share the same strategies for developing renewable energies and green hydrogen. He noted that an electricity network between Portugal and Morocco would contribute to the neutralization of the material character of Europe.
This article was produced as part of the 2023 Climate Change Media Partnership (CCMP) program, a journalism fellowship organized by Internews’ Earth Journalism Network and the Stanley Center for Peace and Security.
Given their geographical position as bridges between Europe and Africa, Morocco and Portugal intend to jointly face the challenges of energy transition, notably through strengthening the integration of electricity markets in an international context marked by the instability of the market and supply chains for energy products. The signing of this joint declaration comes in a context characterized by the global energy crisis and the challenges of the energy transition.
