Rabat - The National Office of Electricity and Drinking Water (ONEE) launched the production phase of a national project to secure and make available water supply for the city of Guercif and neighboring areas.
This large-scale project will harness surface water from the Oued Zobzit river and is part of the National Drinking Water Supply and Irrigation Program 2020-2027, striving to address the water supply deficit in Morocco.
The project carries a total cost of approximately MAD 470 million ($47 million) and is funded by ONEE with support from the African Development Bank (AFDB).
According to a statement from ONEE, the initiative involves constructing a water treatment plant with a daily capacity of 25,920 cubic meters and creating a treated water reservoir with a capacity of 3,500 cubic meters. Also planned is the installation of 80 kilometers of pipelines.
Officially commissioned on August 9, the project marks the start of raw water intake from the Oued Zobzit, which will initially produce around 13,000 cubic meters of treated water per day.
Earlier this month, ONEE launched another major initiative focusing on the cities of Souk Sebt Ouled Nemma, Ouled Ayad, and Dar Ould Zidouh in Fqih Ben Saleh province.
This project involves expanding the Afourer water treatment plant and the raw water pumping station, along with the installation of 60 kilometers of new pipelines.
Morocco’s efforts to combat water scarcity
The ONEE initiative comes as part of broader discussions among Morocco’s stakeholders on water management.
These efforts are in line with King Mohammed VI's priorities outlined in his 25th Throne Day speech, which emphasized the importance of speeding up critical investments in the water sector and exploring innovative solutions to tackle water scarcity.
One such solution is seawater desalination. By 2030, Morocco plans to produce 1.7 billion cubic meters of desalinated water annually, sufficient to meet the drinking water needs of half the population.
Although this initiative is projected to positively help combat the crisis, it is not without its drawbacks.
A recent French report by Vert Eco highlights major drawbacks of desalination on marine biodiversity.
The process generates brine, a concentrated salt and chemical mixture, which, when released into the ocean, disrupts coastal salt concentrations and reduces oxygen levels, impairing marine life and CO2 absorption.
While Morocco is exploring renewable energy options for desalination, experts argue that this method may exacerbate climate change rather than address it and question its sustainability in the long term.