MOROCCO Law and Practice Contributed by: Wacef Bentaibi, Benoit Pape, Chaimaâ Bouhami and Maxime Masurier, Gide Loyrette Nouel
companies ( sociétés régionales multiservices , or SRMs). • Law No 57-09 creating the Moroccan Agency for Solar Energy (Masen) (“Law 57-09”), as amended by Laws No 37-16 and 38-16, which reconfigure Masen, expanding its mandate from the initial solar programme to all renewable energy technologies. Bundling and Unbundling Morocco’s power industry has historically operated under a bundled model, with ONEE acting as a verti- cally integrated public establishment responsible for generation, transmission and distribution. The sector is undergoing a transition towards unbun- dling. The regulatory framework provides for account- ing separation of ONEE’s activities to enable cost transparency. Recent legislative reforms (Laws No 40-19 and 82-21) lay the groundwork for a more open market, envis- aging an independent transmission system operator (TSO) and a strengthened regulator to guarantee fair grid access. Ownership Structure Ownership of the power industry reflects a combi- nation of state and private participation, varying by segment. • Transmission remains a state monopoly under ONEE, which is the sole owner and operator of the national grid and cross-border interconnections. • Distribution is managed through a mixed frame- work. Municipalities may operate distribution directly through municipal utilities ( régies com- munales ) or delegate it to private concessionaires. Recently, the distribution sector has been reorgan- ised through the intervention of the SRMs. • Generation is the most liberalised segment. While ONEE remains the dominant producer (acting directly or on the basis of power purchase agree- ments (PPAs) entered into with private independent power producers (IPPs)), Law 13-09 and its subse- quent amendments have opened the generation of renewable energy to private developers, which may produce and sell electricity directly to consum- ers connected to the high or medium voltage grid
through corporate PPAs. MASEN – a state-owned company whose capital is shared among the State, ONEE, the Hassan II Fund and the Société d ’ Investissements Énergétiques – plays a key role in piloting large-scale renewable energy projects. • Storage is an emerging segment that has not yet reached maturity, although recent legislative devel- opments – in particular Law 82-21, which expressly allows a self–producer to set up an energy storage installation and benefit from storage services under conditions to be set by regulation (Article 15), and Law 13-09 as amended by Law No 40-19 – address the development and operation of storage facilities. 1.2 Principal State-Owned or Investor-Owned Entities Generation The country’s main generation assets are owned and operated primarily by (i) ONEE, a public establish- ment/State-owned entity, (ii) MASEN, a state-owned joint-stock company, and (iii) private IPPs. ONEE is the main public establishment involved in electricity generation. Although its own share of out- put had fallen to around 30% by 2017, ONEE remains at the core of generation activity through its role as single buyer, purchasing the output of IPPs and MASEN-developed plants under long-term PPAs. ONEE has also launched a programme of gas-fired power plants, notably the Orion gas-to-power pro- gramme with TAQA, NAREVA and the Mohammed VI Fund for Investment. MASEN is a joint-stock company ( société anonyme ) held predominantly by the Moroccan State, and established under Law 57-09. Its mission is to devel- op, finance, construct, operate and maintain renew- able energy installations (“REN Facilities”). Pursuant to Law 38-16, ONEE must progressively transfer to MASEN the assets relating to its REN Facilities, sub- ject to defined exceptions. MASEN owns and oper- ates a significant portfolio of renewable generation assets but does not own transmission or distribution networks, and sells electricity primarily on a wholesale basis to ONEE.
243 CHAMBERS.COM
Powered by FlippingBook