Solar powered well in Rhamna, near MarrakechSolar resources in Morocco
Solar power in Morocco is enabled by the country having one of the highest rates of solar insolation among other countries— about 3,000 hours per year of sunshine but up to 3,600 hours in the desert. Morocco has launched one of the world’s largest solar energy projects costing an estimated $9 billion. The aim of the project was to create 2,000 megawatts of solar generation capacity by 2020.[1] The Moroccan Agency for Solar Energy (MASEN), a public-private venture, was established to lead the project. The first plant, Ouarzazate Solar Power Station, was commissioned in 2016.
Morocco has a power cable link to Europe, the Spain-Morocco interconnection, rated at 900 MW when going from Spain to Morocco and 600 MW when going from Morocco to Spain.[2] This is the first electric interconnection built between Africa and Europe.[3]
An International Energy Agency (IEA) report from July 2023 highlights that in 2020, imported fossil fuels—coal, oil, and gas—accounted for over 80% of Morocco's electricity generation. It outlines that Morocco has developed a plan to transform its energy sector by 2030, aiming to increase the renewable energy share to 52%, with specific targets of 20% for solar power, 20% for wind energy, and 12% for hydroelectric power. This approach seeks to enhance energy security and reduce dependence on imported fossil fuels. Additionally, under its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC), Morocco plans to cut greenhouse gas emissions to 18.3% below its baseline levels by 2030, a reduction that could reach 45.5% with international support. To address the solar power's variability and boost energy system resilience, Morocco has also invested in pumped storage hydropower.[4]
The Moroccan Agency for Solar Energy invited expressions of interest in the design, construction, operation, maintenance and financing of the first of the five planned solar power stations, the 500 MW complex in the southern town of Ouarzazate, that includes both PV and CSP.
Construction officially began on 10 May 2013.[6]
The project is divided in 3 phases: a 160MW concentrated solar power project, a 200MW parabolic mirror plant, and a 150MW solar trough plant.[7][8]
The 160 MW first phase, Noor I, was brought online in February 2016.[9]
The project was awarded to a consortium led by Saudi Arabia's ACWA Power, which sells the electricity produced for $0.19/kW·h, and co-financed by the World Bank and the European Investment Bank.[10]
The second phase, the 200 MW Noor 2 plant, came online in January 2018, and the third phase came online in December 2018.[11]
These two phases provide another 580 MW and cover 6,000 acres.[12]
A fourth phase of the project, Noor IV, was also completed in 2018, is a 72 MW photovoltaic station.[13][14]
^Construction begins on 160 MW CSP plant in Morocco, pv-magazine.com/news/details/beitrag/construction-begins-on-160-mw-csp-plant-in-morocco-_100011255/#axzz3OWLu4WTY
