Renewables star Morocco turns its attention to LNG

With last year’s COP 21 climate change summit hailed as a breakthrough, the pressure is on for Morocco – host of the imminent COP 22 summit in November – to build on the momentum of the Paris Agreement. Morocco has already added large-scale solar to a significant wind power programme but, lacking the indigenous hydrocarbon resources of its North African neighbours, the country is looking to supplement its renewable energy supply with LNG. Its new LNG import project marks the end of a long period of reticence by Morocco with respect to gas, stemming in part from the tense relationships with its sole gas supplier and much larger neighbour, Algeria. The LNG scheme will not only balance intermittent supply from the growing renewables programme, but also have to fit into an uncertain outlook for Algerian supply. Gas Matters examines the challenges Morocco faces in adding its name to the growing list of LNG-importing countries.