> I remember doing a bit of spare time research into getting power from the Sahara desert when I was a school kid. The idea is obvious (...)
I'm afraid you failed to understand the point.
There is no question that Morocco has an impressive potential in solar power. Morocco's hydrogen production project is very exciting.
But that's besides the point, and not the issue being discussed.
What clearly is a bonkers idea and has no technical nor strategic justification, let alone in a national security perspective, is the UK wasting it's resources trying to get renewable sources way down in Africa, specially when there are already a wealth of projects already underway right next door.
For perspective, the Dogger bank is home for some wind farm projects which are already similar energy production capacity, such as the Dogger Bank Wind Farm.
The project isn't funded so currently the UK isn't wasting or spending any resources on it at all, it's just a company that'd like people to give it money.
Nonetheless, adding more windmills isn't going to materially change anything at this point. To push renewables further requires them to be reliable enough to start displacing base load.
I don't personally think this cable idea is good either but more because of the costs and risks of cable cuts (possibly deliberate), than the belief that it can be done in other ways.
I'm afraid you failed to understand the point.
There is no question that Morocco has an impressive potential in solar power. Morocco's hydrogen production project is very exciting.
But that's besides the point, and not the issue being discussed.
What clearly is a bonkers idea and has no technical nor strategic justification, let alone in a national security perspective, is the UK wasting it's resources trying to get renewable sources way down in Africa, specially when there are already a wealth of projects already underway right next door.
For perspective, the Dogger bank is home for some wind farm projects which are already similar energy production capacity, such as the Dogger Bank Wind Farm.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dogger_Bank_Wind_Farm