Morocco Invests $5.2 Billion in Solar Energy, Aims to Become Renewable Energy Hub

Morocco will become a "destination for renewable energies". This is the wish expressed by Leila Benali, Minister of Energy Transition and Sustainable Development in an interview with Forbes. She said that Morocco has invested $5.2 billion in solar energy projects and currently produces 4,030 MW from renewable energies out of a total production capacity of 11,000 MW. There are an additional 4,516 MW of renewable energy built or planned available in the kingdom.

In addition to the expansion of large and small-scale renewable energy projects, the government has committed to providing nationwide access to electricity to 100% of the population, up from the current estimated rate of 99.4%, the minister added. Her wish, she said, is that "every school, mosque and house has electricity". According to Leila Benali, the use of microgrids could be a solution to meet energy demands.

In parallel, Morocco plans to export energy to Spain, Portugal and the United Kingdom. It has a total electrical interconnection capacity of 1,400 MW with Spain and Portugal. In the same dynamic, the kingdom is preparing to supply the United Kingdom with 8% of its electricity needs from low-cost renewable energy sources that will be produced as part of the project to build a 3,800 km submarine cable connecting the two countries.