Morocco, India Discuss Means to Promote Cooperation in Energy Sector

New Delhi – Minister of Energy, Mining and Sustainable Development Aziz Rabbah held, Tuesday in New Delhi, talks with several Indian officials from the sector of energy on means to promote bilateral cooperation in this area.

During his meeting with Indian minister for New and Renewable energy, Raj Kumar Singh, the Moroccan minister, who is leading a delegation on a working visit to India until April 12, commended the deep links between Morocco and India as well as the remarkable cooperation between Morocco’s phosphate company, Office Chérifien des Phosphates (OCP), and Indian companies.

The minister, who will take part Thursday in the 16th ministerial meeting of the International Energy Forum, expressed the Kingdom’s desire to consolidate economic partnership relations in the field of renewable energy and energy in general with India.

At this meeting, Rabbah highlighted the national renewable energy strategy, which aims to produce 42% of energy needs from renewable sources by 2020 and 52% by 2030, stressing the importance of setting up a Moroccan-Indian center of excellence in the field of renewable energy in order to establish a fruitful exchange of experience and expertise between the two countries and with the African continent.

At the end of this meeting, the two parties signed a memorandum of understanding aimed at establishing the foundations of an institutional partnership to promote and consolidate technical cooperation in the field of renewable energy for the benefit of both countries.

The memorandum is also meant to develop renewable energy technologies, build capacity, train technical and scientific staff, exchange technical information, organize joint workshops and carry out joint research and projects in this area.