The World Bank has approved a US$519 million project in Morocco as part of its ongoing efforts to develop renewable energy resources.
The project is according to government’s strategy of using concentrated solar power technology. The Noor-Ouarzazate Concentrated Solar Power Project will support Moroccan Agency for Solar Energy with finance helping to increase capacity and output, especially during peak hours.
Morocco is the Middle East’s largest fossil fuel importer to generate over 97 percent of its energy. It is anticipated that the Noor-Ouarzazate Solar Complex alone will supply power to 1.1 million Moroccans by 2018.
Morocco stands at the forefront of climate-friendly policies in the region. The country is well-positioned to benefit from its head-start at a time when other regional powers are beginning to think more seriously about their own renewable energy programs, said, Inger Andersen, regional vice president, World Bank, Middle East and North Africa.
An initial 160 megawatt phase of the project, approved by the Bank in 2011, is currently under construction. The new project will finance the second 350 megawatt phase, and include the installation of solar parabolic troughs and a solar energy tower.
This project will be funded through US$400 million from the Bank and US$119 million from the Bank administered Clean Technology Fund. The expanded solar plant is expected to reduce carbon emissions by 700,000 tons per year.
Other contributors toward the project are the African Development Bank, European Investment Bank, l’Agence Française de Développement, Kreditanstalt fuer Wiederaufbau, and the European Commission.
The World Bank currently has a portfolio of 22 projects in Morocco, amounting to a committed financing of US$2.44 billion.
Solar power in Morocco is enabled by one of the highest rates of solar insolation of any country.
Recently, Morocco has launched one of the world’s largest solar energy projects costing an estimated $9 billion. The aim of the project is to create 2,000 megawatts of solar generation capacity by the year 2020.