Support for Morocco’s energy policy (PAPEM III)
Project description
Title: Support for Morocco’s energy policy (PAPEM III)
Commissioned by: German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ)
Country: Morocco
Lead executing agency: Ministry of Energy, Mines and Environment (MEME)
Overall term: 2020 to 2022
Context
Morocco has set itself ambitious targets in the field of renewable energy. It aims to increase the proportion of electricity generated using renewable energy sources to 52 per cent of installed capacity by 2030. This will enable Morocco to considerably reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and in doing so successfully implement its nationally determined contributions (NDCs).
To this end, major programmes have been launched to develop solar, wind and hydroelectric power, mobilising both public electricity utilities and the private sector. With a view to creating an enabling environment for this renewable energy drive, various legal and institutional measures have been adopted, including laws on feeding electricity from renewable energy sources into medium and low-voltage networks and the creation of the National Electricity Regulatory Authority (ANRE).
To implement these programmes and measures, Morocco needs to build capacities and drawn on technical support to equip key actors in the sector with the expertise and tools needed to address the challenges associated with renewable energy and harness the opportunities it presents in the country.
Objective
The conditions are in place to enable the development of renewable energy in the private sector.
Approach
The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH continues to support Morocco in its efforts to achieve its national energy policy goals and progressively liberalise the electricity market.
To this end, the PAPEM III project cooperates with the Ministry of Energy, Mines and Environment (MEME) and other actors concerned with planning and regulation. The project staff provide technical advice and carry out a range of capacity development activities.
Private, municipal and state-owned energy providers receive technical advice on feeding electricity from renewable energy sources into the grid and on conducting capacity-building measures.
PAPEM III focuses on three areas of action:
Regulation of the energy market
Firstly, it strengthens the institutional and regulatory framework of the National Electricity Regulatory Authority.
Energy planning
Secondly, the project supports MEME in developing an energy-specific IT system and an integrated energy modelling system to forecast and plan supply and demand.
Grid feed-in for electricity from renewable sources
Finally, it supports Morocco in putting the regulatory and administrative conditions in place to integrate renewable energy sources. To achieve this, it works with MEME to formulate draft amendments to the Renewable Energy Act (13-09). In addition, it runs pilot projects on managing municipal distribution networks.
Results
In previous projects in the same area, German technical cooperation activities reached 240 representatives of the public and private energy sector with information on liberalising the energy market.
MEME set up the Moroccan Energy Observatory and developed its web portal, which enables users to access reliable, up-to-date information on developments in the energy sector.
Selected experts at the Ministry developed a system for energy modelling that can make long-term forecasts on future energy scenarios. The project also trained a group of researchers in energy modelling; in turn, the group now provides training sessions on the subject through a university platform.
The project organised and facilitated several workshops to discuss changes that could be made to Act 13-09, resulting in the formulation of concrete recommendations on the draft amendment.
