One thing is certain: the Minister of Energy Transition and Sustainable Development, Leila Benala, would be fine even without the storm, against the background of thick rumors, bad jokes and attacks on privacy, of which she was a collateral victim. This primarily referred to the rich Australian entrepreneur Andrew Forrest, the second richest in the country, the head of the giant Fortescue – a world leader in green energy, metals and technologies – whose every move is closely followed, recorded and commented on in Australian, and therefore in British. , tabloids.
It only took one photo, which was first published by the Australian version of Sulphurous Daily mail and busy with a particularly large circulation Australian, so that a real shock wave is felt, from Melbourne to Rabat. What is it about? From the intimate moment of the same Andrew Forrest, immortalized in the 4th arrondissement of Paris and in public, dated last week, with a mysterious “unknown woman”. According to the same British press, it would be… Leila Benali.
If the alleged “romance” caused a scandal in Australia, it is because the rich businessman is in the process of divorcing Nicole Forrest. “The couple is separated, but technically still married“, he remarked Australian. And let’s assume that the relationship he maintains in the meantime connects him with a Moroccan minister, who herself is divorced.
As “proof”, she wants to find herself in the orbit of the man nicknamed “Twiggy” more than once, especially because she, like the delegation from Fortescue, received him last February in Rabat or met with him in Davos a month earlier. .
Just as Benali was recently in Paris on duty, around the same time as Fortescue’s boss.
On May 23, Leila Benali was also among the guests during the Australian National Day celebration, organized at the Australian Embassy in Rabat, sponsored, among others, by the same Fortescue.
Conflict of interest? What conflict of interest?
There is silence on one side or the other. Andrew Forrest, at the helm of a $25 billion fortune at the latest, declined to comment. The same for Leila Benali. However, questioned yesterday Monday by a colleague ChoufTV in the halls of parliament, a Moroccan official said that she “goal More than a year“and that she will”return“.
In his surroundings, Le360 learns that the defamation trials, attacks ad hominem and invasion of privacy are in the works. But we won’t know anymore.
What is even more serious, above all suspicions of a conflict of interest make an a priori consensual relationship between two adults an “affair”. The scandal, if it was, broke out when Fortescue announced a joint project with the OCP group on April 8. This equal partnership, joint venture, intends to supply green hydrogen, green ammonia and green fertilizers to Morocco, Europe and international markets. This includes the potential development of production facilities and a research and development center to advance Morocco’s rapidly growing renewable energy industry.
For this purpose, the Australian multibillionaire was expected in Morocco this week for meetings with the Minister of Industry and Trade, Ryad Mezzour, but also, above all, with the head of the government, Aziz Akhannouch.
“Above all, Morocco emerges from this partnership as a winner in terms of the valuable technology transfer that is expected, at a time when the country relies heavily on renewable energy sources, especially green hydrogen.», clarifies the economist who rejects any hypothesis about a conflict of interest. “As far as I know, Leila Benali has no stake in OCP, much less is she connected to any company that can directly benefit from Fortescue’s projects in Morocco.“, jokes our source, specifying that these partnerships go far beyond personal considerations and include, on the Moroccan side, the entire government.
The CEO of Fortescue Energy, Mark Hutchinson, was not wrong when he emphasized that the mentioned joint venture in this case means “contribute to making Morocco a powerhouse for green energy production, manufacturing and industry, with significant long-term benefits for Morocco“.
And that’s not all. According to insiders African intelligentsia, the partnership between Fortescue and OCP could give a decisive boost to the still timid economic relations between Morocco and Australia in cutting-edge sectors. “A few months ago, Australian companies specializing in the production of lithium electric batteries were approached by the Moroccan authorities. Australia, the world’s leading producer of this metal, is trying to position itself on the electric battery gigafactory projects announced by Morocco, and one of the big unknowns remains the supply of ‘white gold,'” we read.
Australia also draws on its geographical similarities with Morocco and shared risk of drought to participate in seawater desalination projects, specializing in technologies to manage large irrigation systems, and already has a strong presence in the Kingdom. If the interest certainly exists, suffice it to say that there is absolutely no conflict in this case. To be continued.