Morocco Falls Behind in Electric Bus Production as Other Nations Reap Benefits

"The establishment of a local production ecosystem for electric buses will allow Morocco to gain on several fronts. Knowing that the transport sector is the most polluting at the national level, the first gain is health, as we will be able to substantially reduce air pollution and the thousands of deaths it causes annually," analyzed Hassan Sentissi El Idrissi, president of the Sustainable Development Holding (HDD), which is carrying a project to manufacture electric buses Made in Morocco, in an interview with L’Opinion.ma. According to him, the second gain is a significant saving of foreign exchange, as 100% of the fuels used today in Morocco come from imports, and the energy that will be used is local in addition to being renewable. "Knowing that by 2030 thermal vehicles will be less and less in circulation, the third gain is to be able to produce our own needs in terms of collective vehicles for urban and intercity transport. We could even position ourselves as a continental, or even international, hub given the attractiveness and competitiveness that our country offers for an industrial ecosystem of this kind..." he added.

Other advantages: job creation, realization of electric mobility, possibility of selling carbon credits... Buoyed by these many advantages, HDD is working to secure the necessary investments to set up a first factory for the local manufacture of electric buses. "If we start manufacturing today, we could have the first 500 buses in just over 6 months and only pay for the parts supplied by our international partners in 5 years, provided the state positions itself as a guarantor for this formula," assured the HDD boss. But obstacles stand in the way of the company. He notably mentions the absence of a public order for a certain number of vehicles "This is where the whole machine set in motion for years is stuck. Yet the project is completely in line with the strategies put in place under the impetus" of King Mohammed VI, he continued, stressing that "if we want to achieve the 2030 objectives and ensure the organization of a World Cup whose watchwords are sustainability and modernity, it is now that we must decide and cut."

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