Opinion: Why Morocco has no dedicated hydrogen law

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As Morocco accelerates its green hydrogen ambitions, legal consultant Ahmed Haloui argues that the absence of a sector-specific hydrogen law does not signal a regulatory gap. Instead, he contends that it reflects a deliberate policy choice to structure the sector through an integrated investment framework built on existing legislation.

• Mr Haloui is a legal consultant at Prestaconsult, a Rabat-based consultancy specialising in the analysis and evaluation of legal and institutional frameworks across sectors including energy, while also supporting contractual arrangements within public-private partnerships (PPPs) and institutional restructuring.

• He notes that each level of the green hydrogen value chain is already governed by established Moroccan law, which is subsequently organised into a coherent investment pathway under the “Morocco Green Hydrogen Offer”. By prioritising regulatory coordination over the creation of a new hydrogen statute, Morocco is, he maintains, adopting a pragmatic and internationally consistent approach to sector development.

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By Ahmed Haloui

The years 2024–2025 mark a decisive acceleration in Morocco’s green hydrogen policy. Recent official statements issued by the Head of Government and by the Steering Committee of the “Morocco Green Hydrogen Offer” announced the identification of dedicated public land, the selection of national and international private consortia, and the launch of negotiations on large-scale integrated projects covering the entire green hydrogen value chain.

These announcements are part of a broader strategic vision articulated at the highest level of the State, positioning green hydrogen as a cornerstone of Morocco’s energy transition, industrial sovereignty and integration into global clean energy value chains. From the legal side, a recurring question would arise: Does the absence of a specific green hydrogen law reflect a regulatory gap, or does it result from a deliberate and pragmatic legal choice?

An analysis of the green hydrogen value chain—renewable electricity generation, hydrogen production through electrolysis, storage and transport, industrial transformation, export, and strategic private investment—shows that each component is already governed in the Moroccan context by existing legal and institutional frameworks. Morocco’s approach therefore does not consist in creating new law, but in coordinating, aligning, and operationalizing existing ones.
Legal frameworks governing the green hydrogen value chain:
Renewable electricity generation: The legal foundation of green hydrogen

Renewable electricity generation constitutes the technical and legal foundation of green hydrogen. It is primarily governed by Law No. 13-09 on renewable energies as amended , which opened the sector to private initiative and by other laws related to power self-production . This framework authorizes private production, self-production, commercialization, export of renewable electricity, and access to the national grid under regulated conditions. From a legal perspective, green hydrogen does not require a special upstream energy regime : the electricity required for electrolysis can already be produced within a liberalized and legally secure framework.

Hydrogen production: A regulated industrial activity

Hydrogen production through electrolysis falls under the general legal regime of industrial activities. It is subject to rules governing industrial facilities, including safety standards, urban planning regulations, and environmental protection requirements. Law No. 11-03 on environmental protection, together with environmental impact assessment regulations, provides a transversal legal framework. Green hydrogen is therefore legally treated as a regulated industrial activity, without the need for a separate or autonomous legal qualification.

Land access and territorial basis of projects

Green hydrogen projects are land-intensive by nature. Moroccan regulations already provide appropriate legal instruments, including the regime governing State private land, long-term leases ("baux emphytéotiques") , concessions, and temporary occupation authorizations.
The originality of the Morocco Green Hydrogen Offer does not lie in the creation of new land rights, but in the identification, mobilization, and legal securing of suitable land for large-scale industrial projects, thereby mitigating one of the main risks perceived by investors.

Storage, transport and industrial transformation

The storage, transport, and transformation of hydrogen into derivatives such as green ammonia or synthetic fuels fall under existing regulations on energy, industrial safety, hazardous substances, and industrial operations. These activities illustrate an incremental adaptation of existing legal frameworks to new technological uses, rather than a normative break requiring sector-specific legislation.

Export and integration into global value chains

Green hydrogen and its derivatives are legally treated as industrial products intended for export. Morocco’s customs and trade framework, combined with free trade agreements and advanced port infrastructure, facilitates their integration into international markets. From a legal perspective, no specific export regime was required to accommodate green hydrogen as a new energy vector.

Green hydrogen investment under the new investment charter

The central legal lever of Morocco’s approach on green energy lies not in sectoral regulation, but in investment law. Framework Law No. 03-22 establishing the Investment Charter introduces a differentiated regime for strategic, sustainable, and high-impact investments. Green hydrogen projects fully meet these criteria due to their capital intensity, long-term horizon, contribution to energy transition, and industrial development. As such, these projects may benefit from tailored incentive mechanisms, financial and fiscal support, and investment agreements concluded directly with the government. This approach enables a customized legal treatment based on public–private partnership and risk-sharing, without resorting to a rigid, sector-specific legislative framework

Comparative perspective: EU, Germany and Chile

A comparative analysis shows that Morocco’s approach is consistent with emerging international best practices.

European Union: At EU level, green hydrogen development relies primarily on strategic frameworks (EU Hydrogen Strategy, REPowerEU) and the adaptation of existing energy, competition and state aid rules, rather than on a single comprehensive hydrogen law. Legal certainty is achieved through regulatory alignment, delegated acts, and contractual mechanisms.

Germany: Germany has not adopted a comprehensive “Hydrogen Code”. Instead, it relies on its National Hydrogen Strategy, combined with existing energy, industrial and environmental laws, complemented by targeted funding schemes and contracts . Flexibility and investment confidence are achieved through policy instruments rather than legislative over-specification.

Chile: Chile’s green hydrogen policy is also strategy-driven. Its National Green Hydrogen Strategy operates within existing mining, energy, environmental and investment laws, supported by land allocation mechanisms and state-backed incentives. The emphasis is on regulatory coherence and project facilitation rather than new sectoral legislation.

In all three cases, legal certainty is not achieved through legislative inflation, but through coordination, predictability and investment-oriented governance.

The “Morocco Green Hydrogen Offer” as an instrument of normative coherence

The Morocco Green Hydrogen Offer is not a formal source of law. It functions as a regulatory and an economic governance instrument designed to articulate existing legal frameworks around a unified national strategy. By doing so, it enhances regulatory clarity, strengthens investor confidence, reduces administrative and legal fragmentation and transforms dispersed rules into a coherent investment pathway.

The absence of a specific green hydrogen law does not reflect a deficiency in the Moroccan legal framework. On the contrary, it illustrates a pragmatic legal choice, based on the mobilization and coordination of existing regulatory frameworks. In this respect, the Morocco Green Hydrogen Offer stands as a sign of legal and institutional maturity, favoring normative coherence, regulatory flexibility and investment security over sector-specific legislative inflation.