Research projects on “decarbonized hydrogen” strengthen the Moroccan-French partnership

The Moroccan-French partnership continues to strengthen the founding economic pillars and strengthen the woven threads after the return of warmth to the relations of Rabat and Paris since the beginning of this year. This was clearly embodied in the step to initiate a “French-Moroccan partnership to support applied research projects in the field of carbon-free hydrogen (l’hydrogène décarboné).

This partnership, whose contents are sealed by the French diplomatic representation in Morocco, concerns the Institute for Research in Solar Energy and New Energies (IRESEN) in Morocco, which has strengthened its relationship and partnership with the “Paris-Saclay Company for the Acceleration of Technology Transfer” known as (SATT Paris-Saclay).

According to data obtained by the electronic newspaper Hespress from officials of the French Development Agency in Morocco, following the visit that brought Bruno Le Maire, the French Minister of Economy, Finance, Industrial and Digital Sovereignty, to Morocco last weekend and his attendance at the Moroccan-French Economic Forum, supporting applied research in the field of clean hydrogen It comes “as part of the consolidation of the partnership between Morocco and France; Especially in the fields and projects of the energy transition and supporting the Moroccan energy strategy through applied research and innovation in the field of green technologies.”

According to the same data, “within the framework of the partnership, which is supported by the French Development Agency (AFD) and the French Treasury with a donated gift of 800 thousand euros, a “call for innovative projects dedicated to the decarbonized hydrogen sector will be launched in the second half of 2024,” recording “Morocco is currently in an ideal position to play a pioneering role in developing this promising sector in the future.”

The partnership parties stated that “this call for projects (appel à porojets) sets the goal of selecting, supporting and developing, over a period extending over three years, a number of distinguished innovative initiatives, led by joint French-Moroccan teams, to contribute to the transition to a low- or zero-carbon economy.” .

According to what was announced, “technological innovations will be developed for the purposes of manufacturing, marketing and promotion.” This dynamic of cooperation will allow the IRESEN Institute to benefit from the experience of its partner, SATT Paris-Saclay, in everything related to “evaluating the results of applied research and transferring technology to the market.”

According to a report reached by Hespress newspaper from the French Development Agency (Morocco office), Christophe Lecourtier, the Paris ambassador to Rabat, commented: “This cooperation in applied research strengthens the partnership between France and Morocco in the field of energy transition, as well as in this strategic sector.” of carbon-free hydrogen.

For his part, Samir Rashidi, Director General of the Research Institute for Solar Energy and Renewable Energies, said, “By implementing this call for market-oriented applied research projects, we want to develop low-carbon hydrogen technologies and transform them into marketable industrial products. Therefore, we are strengthening our participation in developing the sector.”

“Climate change requires us to promote a low-carbon economy,” said Quitre Pinsent, Director of AFD in Morocco. “Developing research on the green hydrogen value chain contributes to this transformation and represents an additional opportunity to deepen and stimulate our bilateral cooperation.”

It is noteworthy that the Moroccan Institute for Research in New Energies contributes, among other tasks, to “developing technological road maps in the clean energy sector, including solar resources, electric mobility, and green hydrogen.”