The National Office for Electricity and Drinking Water (ONEE) plans to pursue its policy of major investments in 2022. Holding the sixth session of its board of directors last Wednesday, the Office announced the achievement several investment projects, with an overall envelope of 10.5 billion dirhams, 5.2 billion for the electricity activity and 5.3 billion for the drinking water and liquid sanitation activity during the current year. “These investments will make it possible to guarantee the continuity of the public service and the continuation of the supply of the country with electricity and drinking water”, specifies a press release published by the Office.
With regard to electricity, it is planned to achieve an additional production capacity of 387 MW (wind farms of Taza and Boujdour). Thus, the installed electrical capacity should reach 11,130 MW at the end of 2022, with a 40% share in renewable energies. With regard to electricity transmission infrastructure, 16 new transformer stations will be commissioned in 2022. In terms of drinking water, the production of 1,342.8 million m³ is planned for 2022 and the equipment for an additional flow of 561,600 m³/day which will bring the Office’s overall production capacity to 7.35 million m³/day, in order to meet the sustained growth in the drinking water supply needs of the country. With regard to the liquid sanitation activity, it is planned in 2022 to commission 14 new wastewater treatment plants with an additional capacity of 41,382 m³/day, still according to the same source.
Speaking during this session, the director general of the Office, Abderrahim El Hafidi, emphasized the particular context of the holding of this council session, marked by the profound changes experienced by the electricity sectors, drinking water and liquid sanitation in Morocco. The official pointed out that the Office is called upon to meet major challenges in order to be able to achieve the strategic objectives assigned to it in order to support the overall development dynamic integrating several strategic projects and reforms launched by the Kingdom, in particular the project of reform of the public sector and the implementation of the recommendations of the new development model in the electricity and water sectors. He specified in his speech that the Office is also called upon to meet the challenges relating to the return of the upward trend and the soaring prices of raw materials and fuels at the international level, negatively impacting its financial balances.