Morocco

Dii ACTIVITIES

In May 2011, Dii and MASEN, the Moroccan Agency for Solar Energy, signed a Memorandum of Understanding for the development of a large solar project in Morocco. The specificity of this first Dii Reference Project is to demonstrate the export feasibility of solar generated electricity in the deserts to Europe, using existing lines between Spain and Morocco. MASEN acts as project developer and manages the overall process in Morocco, especially the specification of the project and the identification of locations. Dii acts as enabler, providing its expertise in developing a feasible business case for the planned solar project. This Reference Project has a total capacity of 500 MW and an estimated cost of approx. €2 billion. The first phase of the project will be a 150 MW pilot plant expected to be a solar thermal station with an estimated cost of €600 million. A second phase with a combination of wind and photovoltaics (100 MW) has already been defined. Following specification, invitation to tender and construction, the first available power from the joint Dii/MASEN project could be fed into the Moroccan and Spanish grids around 2014-16 depending on the technology selected. Dii, in co-operation with the system operator ONE and IAEW/RWTH Aachen, has carried out a grid congestion analysis, which highlights the feasibility of integrating the Reference Project into the Moroccan grid.

Country information

SOCIO-ECONOMIC DATA

• Population in 2010: 32 million (UN World Population Prospects) 

• Estimated population in 2050: 40 million (UN World Population Prospects, medium scenario)

• Share of population under 15 years in 2011: 28% (Population Reference Bureau)

• Unemployment rate: 10% in 2009 (World Bank). According to the Moroccan authorities, the unemployment rate in Morocco was approx. 9% in October 2011.

• GDP per capita ($2005, PPP) in 2010: $4,227 compared to $27,562 in the European Union (World Bank)

• CO2 emissions in kg per 2005 PPP $ of GDP in 2008: 0.4kg compared to 0.3kg in the European Union (World Bank)

ENERGY SITUATION

• Energy mix in 2010: approx. 30% of renewable energy (4% wind and 26% hydro) and 70% of fossil fuels (17% gas, 24% oil and 28% coal) (Platts/UDI 2010)

• Energy mix in 2050: In its strategic study Desert Power 2050, Dii shows how Morocco's energy mix could look like in 2050, in the context of an "EUMENA" electricity grid connecting the MENA region to Europe and mainly based on renewable energy. Click here to see the potential of Morocco in terms of renewable energy production.

• Share of net imports in total consumption: 20% of imported electricity in 2008 (MED-EMIP, 2010)

• Renewable energy installed capacity besides hydro in 2011: approx. 300 MW of CSP, PV and wind (Ministry of Energy and Mining in Morocco)

• Electricity consumption per capita in 2010: approx. 800 kWh/per capita (Arab Union of Electricity, UN World Population Prospects)

• Growth in electricity demand: approx. 7% compound annual growth rate between 2010-2020 (Forecast by Arab Union of Electricity)

RENEWABLE ENERGY

• The Moroccan Solar Plan is a national strategy to develop renewable energy in Morocco. Its objective is to build a capacity of 2,000 MW of solar energy in the country by 2020. Five sites have already been identified for various projects. The plan also foresees the establishment of new legislation for renewable energy and energy efficiency as well as the creation of a dedicated fund.

• MASEN, the Moroccan Agency for Solar Energy, effectively set up in March 2010, is a limited company with public funding which was created for the implementation of the integrated Moroccan Solar plan and the promotion of solar resources in every aspect. MASEN has three main missions: develop solar power plants, contribute to the development of a national expertise and be a force of proposition on the regional and international plans.

• Ain Beni Mathar: Located in Northeast Morocco near the Algerian border, Ain Beni Mathar is the first integrated solar thermal combined cycle power station worldwide with a total capacity of 470 MW. 20 MW of this total is generated from solar field made up of parabolic trough collectors. The remaining output is generated by a conventionally combined cycle that consists of one steam turbine and two gas turbines. The plant is owned by Morocco’s National Electric Authority, ONE, and was financed, among others, by the African Development Bank and the WB’s Global Environment Facility. The plant began operation in 2010. Abener will take care of operations and maintenance for the first five years. From then onwards, it will be entirely operated and maintained by ONE.

• Ouarzazate: Ouarzazate is the location chosen by the Moroccan Government for the first solar thermal power (CSP) project to be built within the framework of its national solar plan. The total capacity of this first site is 500 MW. In November 2011, the World Bank approved $297 million in loans to Morocco to back construction and operation of the Ouarzazate power plant, in particular to support the first phase (160 MW) of the Ouarzazate 500 MW complex. Additionally to the World Bank, the African Development Bank, the European Investment Bank, the German Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW), the French Agency for Development and MASEN have committed a total amount of approx. $1.4 billion to the project. In late 2010 MASEN invited international tenders for the first phase of this project and a consortium led by ACWA Power International, shareholder of Dii, was announced as preferred bidder in September 2012. 

• Wind: Morocco also has very good conditions for wind energy projects. Morocco has an installed wind capacities of approx. 280 MW and the authorities are aiming to develop around 2 GW of wind power, so far with considerable success.

See country information about: Algeria, Tunisia.