Forbes: Morocco Eyes LNG Options For New Plant

For years, Morocco has moved to diversify an energy diet that was overly dependent on costly and unsustainable energy imports. As the largest importer of oil and gas in North Africa, Morocco has been saddled with expensive and occasionally unstable options. In recent years, the country has moved to broaden its energy resource base with new oil and gas exploration and renewable energy support. Now, at a cost of $4.6 billion, Morocco is moving towards a future that will include liquefied natural gas into the mix, allowing a greater choice of global prices and reliability in comparison to traditional pipeline projects.

The next, and necessary, step in this process, is to select a producer to supply LNG moving forward, including possible partnerships with Qatar, Russia or the United States, according to media reports.

In addition to allowing access to a greater variety of global gas prices, Morocco’s LNG plans would help reach its diversification goals by 2020. According to The National, the country hopes to provide 42 percent of its energy needs with renewable energy options by that year, with the remaining coming from fewer imports and a burgeoning domestic production sector.
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