Morocco Aims to Export Renewable Energy to Europe by 2030, Boosting Green Power Supply

Morocco wants to take advantage of its geographical potential (300 days of sunshine per year and hundreds of kilometers of coastline) to achieve energy self-sufficiency and become one of Europe’s main energy suppliers, which is currently going through an energy crisis due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. At the end of 2021, Morocco had an electricity production capacity of 11 GW, of which 36.3% came from renewable sources, or 1,466 MW of wind, 831 MW of solar and 1,770 of hydroelectricity, according to data from the Spanish Institute of Foreign Trade (ICEX).

Morocco has set a target of reaching 52% of renewable energy production capacity by 2030. In this regard, it is seeking the help of partners such as the United Kingdom or the European Union. The latter has financed 60% of the construction of the world’s largest solar power plant, Noor Ouarzazate, located in the south of the kingdom. This is the first major project of the Moroccan Agency for Solar Energy (MASEN) which has a total of 20 solar power plants under construction or planned, including two in the Sahara.

Noor Ouarzazate is the first power plant in the world to combine photovoltaic and thermal solar power production. Several wind farms are also being developed in parallel with a production capacity of 2,000 MW per year, not to mention the existing dams capable of producing 1,300 MW. The ongoing XLINKS project will also allow Morocco to produce renewable energy with a total capacity of 10.5 GW and export it by submarine cable to the United Kingdom.

Morocco adopted a roadmap in 2021 to develop green hydrogen. In this perspective, the company TotalEren will invest 10 billion euros (100 billion dirhams) to build a large green hydrogen and ammonia production plant in the Guelmim-Noun region. It will be able to produce up to 10 GW of energy. Rabat’s goal is to achieve local hydrogen production of 4 terawatt-hours (TWh) and export 10 TWh of energy by 2030.