The power outage that occurred at the end of April on the Iberian Peninsula not only plunged Spain, Portugal, and southern France into darkness; it also highlighted worrying vulnerabilities that transcend borders. Although Morocco did not experience a power interruption, the consequences were felt through disruptions in internet access, pointing to a dependence on European infrastructure, particularly the undersea cables passing through Spain.
According to Mohamed Tmart, a cybersecurity expert, the failure was caused by a sudden loss of 15 gigawatts of capacity in Spain, nearly 60% of its energy demand. This imbalance led to the automatic disconnection of the Iberian Peninsula from the European electricity grid. A rare technical event, but one that brings to the forefront the issues of energy and technological sovereignty for countries like Morocco.
The observation is clear: in terms of interconnections, the current model relies on overly centralized structures, exposed to abrupt disruptions. The expert therefore advocates for an urgent diversification of Morocco’s international links, particularly through the establishment of new undersea cables independent of the peninsula. Connections to continental Europe and West Africa could offer better resilience in the event of an incident.
But the stakes go beyond physical connections. Tmart emphasizes the need for Morocco to strengthen its local capacities: to invest heavily in renewable energies, develop national data centers, and install backup systems for electricity and telecommunications. He also mentions the crucial need for storage capacities and backup solutions to ensure service continuity even in the event of a cross-border outage.
In the hours following the outage, hypotheses of a cyberattack quickly emerged, fueled by the international context marked by an increase in malicious acts against critical infrastructure. Although this avenue was dismissed by Spanish authorities, the immediate reaction shows how seriously digital threats are now taken.
To address future crises, Mohamed Tmart calls for a genuine overhaul of national resilience measures. He recommends establishing regularly tested continuity plans, better coordination between critical operators and public authorities, as well as enhancing the skills of teams in crisis management.
In summary, the Iberian incident acts as a wake-up call: Morocco must prepare against the risks of external interruption by strengthening both its infrastructure and its capacity for anticipation. Energy and digital autonomy is no longer a matter of strategic comfort, but a national security imperative.
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