What strikes me more -as a researcher- is that the Kingdom of Morocco is moving on the path of development with discretion and quietness, gained from a deep historical legacy of civilization this brother country owns, supported by the wisdom of His Majesty King Mohammed VI, which gives a huge amount of idiosyncrasy to the policies and orientations of the kingdom.
I recently followed the launch of the first phase of a project which is the largest of its kind in the world for the production of solar energy, the “Noor 1” station in the series of stations, “Noor Ouarzazate”, which extends over an area of about 3,000 hectares, and is designed to provide about one million Moroccan homes with energy through its clean and renewable sources.
This ambitious project, which has a total final investment target around nine billion dollars is like a real quantum leap in planning and development in the Kingdom of Morocco, as it addresses one of the most important needs of the Moroccan people, electric power, of which the country imports more than 90% of its needs, while this promising project aims to meet about 42% of these needs through a clean and renewable source.
There is no doubt that the trend towards clean energy is an important positive planning response by the Moroccan leadership, not only for the fact that this source is a subject of intense international attention by virtue of its continuity and sustainability, which is increasing the international reliability on it in recent years, but also because clean energy responds to one of the most important Universal sources of concern and anxiety, which is reducing the effects of global warming and the urgent need to reduce carbon emissions and to reduce the carbon footprint of each individual state, as the footprint and the share of states from the production of greenhouse gases are like a standard through which is measured the quality of the environment in this or that country.
There is no doubt that this giant development project reflects the thoughtfulness of the Moroccan leadership in the using of the country’s natural resources in an optimal manner, and the maximization of the opportunities of future Moroccan generations to get a secure future, and possess the elements of sustainable development, which has become the key to modern planning in the Twenty First Century.
Strategic gains expected from the involvement of the Kingdom of Morocco with the progress on sustainable development through the clean and renewable energy gate are not limited to the foregoing only, but precedence in this vital area is an additional quality feature to the Kingdom’s advantage, which could put itself at the forefront of the field of the global energy race , which is the backbone of development and manufacturing plans, as it is expected that after the completion of the plants of this project, the Kingdom of Morocco would become one of the most important clean energy producers in the world , as well as what it means to possess expertise in this strategic promising sector, not to mention the possibility of future additional expansion so this energy would become an important source of income supporting the Moroccan economy, in light of indicators of the growing need for energy by the neighbor European countries, which seem avid for additional resources to meet their growing energy needs in the coming years and decades.
This huge strategic project has opened the gates to hopes of building a better future for sustainable development in the Kingdom of Morocco, as it drives future planning towards better investment of the natural resources of the Kingdom, and in the heart of them, the spatial area and the wonderful geographic location, which gives enormous scope for investment and the transformation of these advantages into sources of production to meet the needs of the Moroccan people in all sectors of development.
There are other “political” significations to this economic achievement. In fact, the opening of this vital project precedes the Kingdom’s hosting of the World Climate Conference, through the end of the year, which can be considered as one of the most important turns of the global dealing with the problem of global warming, which is haunting policymakers all over the world. The next World Climate Conference will put the decisions of the recent Paris conference on the table, and will work to monitor the implementation of these decisions, which in turn represent a historic achievement both in terms of addressing this very serious climate phenomenon, and at the level of cooperation and understanding among the nations of the world, particularly the major industrialized countries.
In my opinion, the Kingdom of Morocco has established itself well in the leadership of the clean energy locomotive on the African continent, as it can take advantage of the immense geographical resources in this continent and help the development of its peoples and contribute to the march of civilization and humanity, through the provision of the necessary cognitive expertise for development and through filling the need of these countries for clean and renewable electrical energy, whether through cognitive and technical support or through the necessary planning for the construction of interconnected regional networks for the production and export of clean energy.
The project of the “Noor Ouarzazate” stations represents a Moroccan leader step that puts Morocco among developed countries that put ecological planning in mind, opening promising areas for joint investment, and providing a promising future for the coming generations, not compromising negatively their environmental rights, which has become an influential factor in guiding the future compass.
A tribute to the Moroccan leadership for the schematic and strategic awareness, for the ability to absorb the vocabulary and variables of these times, for having a clear prospective future outlook, and for the promising horizon that puts people in the forefront, and congratulations to the brotherly Moroccan people for this gigantic project.
