The Moroccan presidency of the Association of Mediterranean Energy Regulators (MEDREG) had one of its highlight moments on June 14 and 15 in Greece by successfully holding the annual high mass of energy regulatory authorities of the region. Indeed, the discussions around the future challenges of energy in the countries around the Mediterranean were as intense as they were diverse during the Third Presidents’ Workshop and the 35th General Assembly of MEDREG which took place over two days in Rhodes. . “The role of coherent regulation in promoting the energy transition in the Mediterranean region” is the central theme chosen for this strategic meeting of high intellectual content.

This event brought together the driving forces of energy regulators, high-level decision-makers and experts to discuss the latest developments and challenges related to the creation of a fully functional and interoperable Mediterranean energy market. With this in mind, two essential points particularly stood out, namely the growing potential of green hydrogen on the one hand, and the fundamental importance of strengthening the independence of regulators for the achievement of their strategic missions on the other. go. “The Mediterranean energy market has the potential to attract more investments from around the world, given its scale and readiness for interconnection. Furthermore, our territory has enormous potential in terms of renewable energies and new energy vectors, particularly green hydrogen. In this perspective, only a completely independent energy regulator can ensure the transparency and neutrality necessary to exploit this precious opportunity,” declared Mr. Abdellatif BARDACH President of MEDREG, and President of the National Energy Regulatory Authority. Electricity (ANRE). It must be emphasized that green hydrogen has immense potential to contribute to the energy transition at a time when the technology is about to reach the maturity to be scaled up. In line with the avant-garde vision outlined by His Majesty King Mohammed VI may God help him, who, let us remember, has placed the operationalization of the green hydrogen sector as a priority, ANRE confirms its leadership by piloting the “Task Force” dedicated to this subject within MEDREG. In this register, the Authority has dissected the challenges and prospects of this promising vector. An intervention which did not fail to arouse the interest and reactions of the participants, with as a point of convergence the imperative need to establish appropriate rules and regulations, to stimulate demand and to promote the production of hydrogen Green. Also, while emphasizing the importance of the independence of MEDREG in the same way as member regulators, Ms. Milou BEEREPOOT, representative of the European Commission (EC), declared: “The EC maintains its commitment to placing energy at the center of its partnership with the neighboring countries of the South and is increasingly seeking opportunities of mutual interest, having a concrete positive impact on the populations concerned. (…) it is necessary to strengthen the business environment through more comprehensive regulatory frameworks which will make it possible to attract new sources of financing. It is precisely on this point that we are counting on the role and expertise of MEDREG for our Mediterranean region. » Finally, this high-level event concluded with the accession of the Energy and Water Services Regulatory Commission of the Republic of North Macedonia, bringing the number of members of the Commission to twenty-eight. this multilateral institution chaired by the Moroccan regulator.