Portugal's Minister of Environment and Energy, Maria da Graça Carvalho, said the proposed electricity interconnection between Portugal and Morocco will only move forward if European or private-sector financing becomes available.
In a written response to a parliamentary question submitted by the CDS-PP party on the proposed link with Morocco, Carvalho said the government "continues to monitor and reassess the possibility of establishing an electricity interconnection between Portugal and Morocco."
"The technological solution and the route remain open," she said, adding that several options could be considered, including a direct connection, a joint Portugal-Spain-Morocco interconnection, or participation in infrastructure developed by private entities.
The minister stressed that the project remains at the assessment stage rather than the investment decision stage.
"The project is therefore at an evaluation stage and not at the stage of making an investment decision," Carvalho said, according to the response published on the Portuguese Parliament's website.
The government plans to carry out a detailed cost-benefit analysis, compare different technical and financial options and assess the interest of network operators and other potential investors.
Carvalho also said that, during the latest meeting between Portuguese and Moroccan government officials responsible for energy, both sides agreed to approach the European Commission over the possibility of recognising the project as a priority infrastructure project and gaining access to European funding mechanisms for energy infrastructure.
The minister said the availability of European or private financing would be essential for the project to progress, given the scale of the infrastructure investment required.
Asked about the potential impact of the project on energy prices, Carvalho said it was too early to determine how it could affect household and business bills.
She explained that the impact would depend on the required investment, the interconnection's capacity and usage, the technological solution adopted and the financing model.
The Portuguese government nevertheless believes that an electricity link with Morocco could deepen market integration and allow energy resources to be used more efficiently, potentially benefiting consumers and strengthening the competitiveness of the economy.
However, Carvalho stressed that these potential benefits would have to be demonstrated through the planned cost-benefit analysis.
Regarding the resilience of Portugal's electricity system, the minister said an interconnection would not, by itself, prevent a nationwide power outage, but could help accelerate the restoration of electricity supplies.
A potential link with Morocco would provide an additional and independent source for restoring power, she said, strengthening diversification, security of supply and the system's recovery capacity.
The project would complement efforts to strengthen Portugal's existing interconnections with Spain and France, as well as national measures already adopted to reinforce electricity-system security.
These measures include doubling the number of power plants capable of operating autonomously from two to four and implementing a national plan to strengthen the resilience and security of the electricity system.
