Can Morocco solve Europe’s energy crisis?

Can Morocco solve Europe’s energy crisis?

BBC, 04 May 2023

LONDON - Morocco has big ambitions to export electricity produced by solar and wind farms to Europe, but should it be prioritising such renewable energy for its home market?

"The resources we have here could be one of the big, big answers to European demand," says Moroccan energy entrepreneur Moundir Zniber.

Mr Zniber is a passionate man who senses opportunity out of crisis.

"I think Morocco represents the best opportunity to get the European continent away from the dependency it has today on Russian gas," he says.

Mr Zniber has spent the past 15 years building his company, Gaia Energy, into one of the leaders of a renewable energy revolution in his home country.

"Morocco has truly one of the best solar and wind resources in the world combined," he says. "We don't have oil, we don't have natural gas, but we have a potential that is just amazing."

The war in Ukraine has catalysed Europe's politicians to increase their efforts to tackle climate change with new sources of clean energy. Morocco hopes to be part of the solution.

It is on Europe's doorstep, and has ambitious plans to generate 52% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2030. The hope is that lots of this electricity will be exported via undersea cables to Europe.

But at present, the country still has to build many more solar and wind farms. Currently the north African nation of 39 million people depends on imports for 90% of its energy needs, and most of that is from fossil fuels.

In 2021, some 80.5% of Morocco's electricity production came from burning coal, gas and oil. By contrast, only 12.4% came from wind power, and 4.4% came from solar.

However, Morocco is already making some tangible progress to boost its renewable energy generation, thanks to projects such as the huge Noor-Ouarzazate Solar Complex. With the first phase opening back in 2016, this is now the world's largest concentrated solar power plant.

Such facilities use mirrors to reflect and concentrate sunlight onto central tower "receivers". These contain fluid that is heated by the light, creating steam that spins turbines to generate electricity.

At Noor-Ouarzazate the mirrors are now spread over 3,000 hectares (11.6 sq miles). The facility was developed by Saudi Arabian firm ACWA Power, with funding also coming from the World Bank and European Investment Bank.

Mr Zniber says that private Moroccan firms like his are now planning to export solar and wind-generated electricity to Europe, and green hydrogen - hydrogen that has been created by renewable energy.

He adds that Gaia Energy is developing wind and solar schemes that could meet up to 4% of Germany and Italy's electricity needs. "And in terms of green hydrogen we have six projects our company is developing that could answer 25% of the needs of the EU."

Meanwhile, British energy start-up Xlinks has plans to build an undersea electricity cable from Morocco to the UK. Its hope is that Moroccan solar and wind power can provide 8% of the UK's electricity requirements by 2030.

Increasing the size of Morocco's solar and wind power generation could help bolster economic growth in the country, according to the World Bank. It has provided millions of dollars of funding for the sectors.

The benefits include a decoupling from the "very heavy volatility of the prices of fossil fuels", according to the World Bank's lead economist for the region, Moez Cherif.

In a country with an unemployment rate of 11.2%, Mr Cherif adds that it could create as many as 28,000 much needed new jobs each year.

He also says it would allow Morocco to "position itself as an industrial hub for investments for exports of green industrial products" such as car manufacturing using renewable energy.

Yet the World Bank estimates that it will cost $52bn (£41.6bn) for Morocco to hit its 2030 renewables target, with most of that money having to come from the private sector. The Moroccan government agrees with that.

The administration is acutely aware of the potential benefits, and is trying to accelerate the renewable vision first laid out by King Mohammed VI in 2009.

Morocco's Minister of Energy Transition and Sustainable Development Leila Benali says some of the slow growth in renewables in the country in recent years has been caused by global factors.

"The world is just coming out from a historic pandemic, total dislocation of supply chains and value chains - also affecting renewable energy, including the way we trade solar panels and wind turbines."

However, she acknowledges there are also internal hurdles to overcome.

Those include "speeding up and streamlining bureaucracy", including making sure companies get things such as "access to land permits relatively fast to ensure that investors get access to the opportunities that they want".

Mrs Benali adds that the government's energy strategy is based on the three pillars of ramping up renewables, increasing efficiency, and more integration into international energy markets.

When asked if it makes sense to export green electricity before all of Morocco's own needs are met through renewables, Mrs Benali says that the "priority" is for Moroccans to have access to the "lowest-cost" green energy.

She adds that there is also a need to take advantage of the "historic opportunity" to integrate with Europe's energy market, and that such opportunities could be an incentive for the much needed private investment.

The World Bank's Moez Cherif believes that Morocco should both increase exports of renewable power, and add more for domestic consumption. "Ideally you should do both," he says.

At last November's COP27 climate change conference in Sharm el-Sheikh, Morocco signed a memorandum of understanding with France, Germany, Portugal and Spain to make it easier to sell power across borders.

However, climate change activist Hajar Khalmichi, from the Mediterranean Youth Climate Network, says she wants to see Morocco fulfil all its domestic energy needs from renewables before thinking of exporting any electricity.

She also thinks that the ambition of 52% of electricity coming from renewables doesn't go far enough, and that there hasn't been enough discussion about where the rest will come from as Morocco tries to lower its dependency on its gas, oil and coal power stations.

Ms Khalmichi adds that she is also concerned that the country is exploring for natural gas off its coastline.

The Moroccan government counters that it has similar challenges to other countries that are going big on renewables, and that it needs gas to deal with the fact that the wind doesn't always blow and the sun doesn't always shine.

Mr Cherif says "there may be a role, a transition role for natural gas [in Morocco]" as the move from fossil fuels to renewables will be a gradual one over the course of decades.

Moundir Zniber adds that Morocco needs "a mix" of energy sources. "Renewables are part of the solution on the electric side."

Algeria still feels the scars of France's colonial massacre

Algeria still feels the scars of France's colonial massacre

By Reda Amrani, The New Arab, 09 May 2023

78 years after French forces killed tens of thousands of Algerians fighting for their freedom, Reda Amrani explores the significance of the event in sparking Algerian independence and shaping its collective memory.

Today, the majority of Western countries commemorate the 8th of May, a day that marks the end of one of the bloodiest wars in modern human history.

On this day, Europeans remember how 78 years ago, their societies were on the verge of being dominated by Nazi power. The scales of history tipped in the opposite direction, and Europe was finally relieved from a totalitarian regime threat that had emerged from within.

However, while Europeans exhaled the euphoria of the end of the Second World War, simultaneously and across the Mediterranean sea, Algerians were faced with a sobering reality. The French colonial regime was arresting and massacring tens of thousands of civilians in retaliation for their fight for liberty. Freedom was too expensive of a commodity to be shared amongst all.

Algerians had been living in dire socio-economic conditions for over a century of French occupation when WWII broke out across Europe, and had therefore underestimated the prospect of its consequences spilling over to the colonies.

But at times of war, military goals transcend human values and tens of thousands of Algerians found themselves forcibly enrolled in the French army as cannon fodder, often in front lines fighting the Nazis. Poorly equipped and ill-trained, those foot soldiers paid the highest price to help defeat the army that was occupying their occupier.

Encouraged by the global decolonisation movement that started sweeping many dominions, Algerian fighters who joined the French army aspired to reap their fair share of the hard-won freedom.

However, their hopes were dashed when many Algerians took to the streets, claiming their promised independence. French authorities responded with the utmost violence to swiftly smother this sprouting desire for freedom in its most important colony.

Emmanuel Macron would only go as far as committing to “symbolic acts” aimed at promoting reconciliation.

Indeed, the apology demanded by Algeria represents a very divisive issue in France.

It took the French army and police up to seven days to massacre up to 45,000 people and bury them in mass graves or burn their corpses in brick ovens. A resonating message had just been sent by the French authorities to recurrent calls of independence made by determined independence movements within the Algerian civil society.

Historians who studied the Algeria occupation era consider the 8th of May 1945 as turning point in the journey for independence. The remarkably violent knee jerk response from the French authorities to independence calls crystalised the armed resistance's legitimacy to uproot their occupier and recover territorial sovereignty as the demise of the colonialist chimera accelerated globally.

Today, the youth-dominated Algerian population only learns about the 8th of May massacre through history books. However, this painful chapter in Algerian modern history has left an indelible mark on the collective memory of the Algerian people.

Even though the vast majority of the population was born post-independence era, the 8th of May 1945 continues to be commemorated and remembered to this day.

78 years later, it is still hard to imagine how a country that is internationally known for peddling human rights could paradoxically commit such atrocities on armistice day. However, the events of that day have left a deep and shameful scar that many French people struggle to come to terms with. It is a reminder that even in the midst of celebration and victory, violence and injustice can still rear their ugly heads.

The 132-year long French occupation of Algeria is undoubtedly one of the darkest chapters in French history books and one of its most horrific sins to be absolved to this day. Regrettably, the numerous calls voiced by Algerian authorities for an official apology for all the losses suffered during the occupation remained unanswered.

When historical legacies fuel political dividends, short term interests at stake outweigh moral integrity virtues. The time elapsed awaiting the recognition has ingrained the wounds rather than healed them.

The responsibility of acknowledging the truth of this terrible bloodshed lies on the shoulders of honest and courageous historians from both sides. An acknowledgement of the perpetrator’s historical crimes and accountability is the first step towards an apology and justice for the victims.

The memory of the 8th of May massacres is not only a source of pain and trauma for the Algerian people, but it is also a testament to their resilience and strength. Despite the horrors they have endured, the Algerian people continue to strive for a better future, one that is built on the principles of justice, equality, and freedom.

The memory serves as a powerful reminder of the importance of remaining vigilant against injustice and oppression, and of the need to fight for a better world, one where human rights are respected and upheld.

In memory of my grandfather, Salah Amrani, and the other 45,000 thousand victims of the crime against humanity.

Reda Amrani is a petroleum engineer from Algeria. Reda has a special interest in North Africa, and is particularly passionate about exploring matters related to energy transition, contemporary history, socio-economy and governance in Algeria. As a descendant of one of the many martyrs who sacrificed their lives for the Algerian revolution against the French occupation, he is deeply committed to preserving the memory of this important historical event.

Opinions expressed in this article remain those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of the New Arab and CEMAS.

'Everyone is afraid': In Algeria, state repression has extinguished Hirak

'Everyone is afraid': In Algeria, state repression has extinguished Hirak

By Basma El Atti, The New Arab, 22 February 2023

In-depth: Four years on from the Hirak movement, prominent activists look back on the once euphoric protests for freedom as repression and fear force Algerians to remain silent in the face of an emboldened authoritarian regime.

Once upon a time, Zaki Hannache, a young Algerian activist, marched in the streets of Algiers chanting with tens of thousands of his compatriots to oust the two-decade-long regime of Abdelaziz Bouteflika.

That was only four years ago, but it feels like a fever dream for Zaki, who now lives in exile in Tunisia, running from one shelter to another in fear of being found by Algerian and Tunisian intelligence agencies, who work together in a witch hunt of their critics.

“It was a real revolution with real requests. But it failed because the authoritarian state managed to rebuild itself quickly and become stronger,” Zaki told The New Arab.

On 22 February 2019, millions of Algerians marched through the North African country’s key cities to oppose a fifth term for the state’s President Bouteflika, who had been in power for two decades.

Algeria's revolutionary wave came eight years later than its Arab Spring neighbours, but Algerians believed that they would write its ending differently.

Each Friday, a symbolic day for revolutions in the region, Algerian protesters marched through the streets chanting in one voice, 'Jibu El Bri ou zidou Saa’iqa, makach el khamssa ya Bouteflika', in English, 'Bring the Intervention Brigades and the Special Forces, there will be no fifth term for Bouteflika'.

Two months later, the Hirak movement forced Bouteflika’s resignation. Still, the weekly protests continued to sweep the country’s streets calling for the dismantlement of the “deep state” and the arrest of “the mafia”, the oligarchy that surrounded Bouteflika. However, authorities decided to hold presidential elections in the same year without first putting reforms in place.

Algerian police soon started arresting the perceived leaders of the informal movement, putting more than sixty activists in custody for Hirak-related charges. The crackdown intensified after the election of Abdelmadjid Tebboune as president in December 2019, who quickly proved to be a new authoritarian president in the making.

Tebboune, a member of the National Liberation Front Central Committee (FDI), Bouteflika’s party, is the first non-military president of Algeria. However, the ex-PM and loyalist of the former leader was immediately rejected by Hirak leaders after his election.

While Tebboune first hailed the Hirak movement as an opportunity for reform, he quickly began arresting its leaders on charges of terrorism.

For protesters, the 77-year-old politician’s election was a badly written sequel of Bouteflika’s era: a civilian facade on the ruling military system.

“Many people boycotted the election day. Tebboune’s election was a calculated move from the state to legitimise its rule,” Zaki Hannache explained to The New Arab.

A state within a state: The role of the military

Since its independence, the Algerian military has exercised a great influence on political power in the country, and is often described as a state within a state. Many believe that, despite having an officially civilian president, the military continues to be the real ruling power in the country.

The legitimacy and supremacy of the Algerian army’s legacy in the political sphere are due to the legacy of its role in fighting French colonisation. Reports say the presidency and the intelligence service have always competed with military elites in Algerian politics.

Today, Tebboune lacks the influence and the power to fight the military's well-established authority.

The power wielded by Algeria's military leadership is seen by experts as one of the biggest obstacles to Algeria's transition to a democratic model and its emergence from the vortex of internal economic crises that are often accompanied by corruption.

Conflating activism with terrorism

Emboldened by an overly broad definition of terrorism, in the aftermath of Hirak the state arrested hundreds of activists, journalists, and supporters of the movement. As of March 2022, 280 people were still in jail on terrorism charges.

In June 2021, President Tebboune expanded Algeria's already overbroad definition of "terrorism" in article 87 of the penal code to include "to work for or to incite by any means, to accede to power or change the system of governance by non-constitutional means" and to "harm the integrity of national territory or to incite doing so, by any means."

Last April, Hakim Debbazi, a 55-year-old Algerian man, died in police custody after being arrested for sharing pro-Hirak posts with his 91 Facebook friends, according to local Radio M and the Algerian League for the Defense of Human Rights (LADDH).

Later last year, authorities dissolved LADDH, driving its leaders to seek refuge in other countries. Meanwhile, Ihsane El-Kadi, director of Radio M, was arrested on 24 December and put in custody for the cliché charges of terrorism and undermining state security.

“Today, we are in a worse era than during Bouteflika. Before [the Hirak] there was no independence, but there was some space to speak up. Today, [...] a post can get you sentenced to up to life imprisonment or the death penalty, and all that because of the exploitation of the terrorism article in the penal code," said Rachid Aouine, the director of Shoaa for Human Rights, to The New Arab.

Spending years in prison, dying of maltreatment or escaping to a foreign country are a few of the choices that anti-state activists have today in Algeria.

"I never wanted to leave Algeria. It is my country, my land. It is where I fought. It is the circumstances that forced me to leave. The pressure became unbearable,” Amira Bouraoui told the press upon her arrival to France after a chaotic escape from Tunisia.

Bouraoui, a Franco-Algerian journalist and activist, managed to board her flight from Tunis to Algiers after an intervention by the French embassy in Tunisia.

Her mother and sister, who live in Algeria, were soon arrested while Algiers recalled its ambassador in Paris in protest of “France intervention in Algeria’s interior affairs”.

Zaki believes he is the next on the list, and with no “international backup,” he risks extradition at any minute.

On 24 February 2022, Zaki appeared before an investigative judge, and was indicted on several charges including “praising terrorism”, “receiving funds from an institution inside or outside the country”, and “undermining state security”. If convicted, he could face 35 years to life imprisonment, and even the death penalty.

Zaki managed to leave Algeria for Tunisia six months ago. However, he says Tunisian and Algerian authorities have started tracking his location in Tunisia since November.

“I change my location every few months. I am in danger. I am living discreetly away from my homeland and my family,” Zaki said. Despite being granted refugee status, Zaki always lives in fear that he may face a similar fate as Suleiman Bouhafs.

Bouhafs, who was granted refugee status in Tunisia in 2018, was kidnapped in 2021 and brought back to Algeria, where he faces criminal charges for “offending Islam.”

For now, Zaki, like many exiled activists, has decided to stop fighting against the Algerian state, instead striving to save his own life.

“Fear is stronger than the opposition now in Algeria. The state has managed to terrorise the people, unfortunately I don’t think a possible revolution will happen in the country now. Everyone is afraid.”