Spain’s Electricity Imports Surge 485%, Sparking Debate Over Moroccan Energy

The specialized media El Economista revealed that Spanish electricity imports increased by 485% in 2019, reaching 1,053 GWh purchased from third countries. Imports worth 53 million euros that come mainly from Morocco and Portugal. But Morocco has moved from being an importer to an exporter in 2019, thanks to the commissioning of the Safi thermal power plant, creating a lively controversy.

The Spanish giants of coal-fired power plants were outraged by the purchase of electricity produced from coal in Morocco, while they had been ordered to close theirs. In fact, the closures of coal-fired power plants respond to a European directive to reduce CO2 emissions.

The goal is to produce and consume only renewable electricity by 2050. The bosses of the closed coal-fired power plants therefore considered it "illogical" to buy "dirty" electricity from Morocco, while the country prohibits it and imposes a tax on its own soil.

The case has been brought before the European Commission by the Spanish Minister of Ecological Transition, Teresa Ribera. The European body has proposed the taxation of electricity produced outside the EU; which will inevitably affect many countries, including Morocco.