Solar Energy in Morocco: Key Projects to Know

Morocco, being the largest energy importer in North Africa, is making concerted efforts to reduce its reliance on imported fossil fuels. Renewable energy is an attractive proposition as Morocco has almost complete dependence on imported energy carriers. Morocco is already spending over USD 13.5 billion each year on fuel and electricity imports and is experiencing power demand growth of 5 per cent per year.

The National Energy and Energy Efficiency Plan was launched in 2008 which aims to develop renewable energy to meet 15 percent of the country’s energy demand and to increase the use of energy-saving methods.  The total installed capacity from renewable energy sources was approximately 4,550 MW in 2025.

The Moroccan Government is actively working to achieve its renewable energy targets. The share of renewables in the national energy mix was almost 45 percent in October 2024. The country is targeting 52 percent renewables by 2030 and 70 percent by 2050, which seems a realistic target to achieve.

Moroccan Solar Plan

Morocco has launched one of the world’s largest and most ambitious solar energy plan. The Moroccan Solar Plan is regarded as a milestone on the country’s path towards a secure and sustainable energy supply. The primary aim of the plan was to generate 2,000 MW (or 2 GW) of solar power by the year 2020 by building mega-scale solar power projects at five location — Laayoune (Sahara), Boujdour (Western Sahara), Tarfaya (south of Agadir), Ain Beni Mathar (center) and Ouarzazate — with modern solar thermal, photovoltaic and concentrated solar power mechanisms.

In 2010, the Moroccan Agency for Solar Energy (MASEN), a public-private venture, was set up specifically to implement these projects.  Its mandate was to implement the overall project and to coordinate and to supervise other activities related to this initiative. Stakeholders of the Agency include the Hassan II Fund For Economic & Social Development, Energetic Investment Company and the Office National de l’Electricité (ONE). The Solar Plan is backed by Germany, with funding being provided by German Environment Ministry (BMU) and KfW Entwicklungsbank while GIZ is engaged in skills and capacity-building for industry.

Ain Beni Mather Project

The Ain Beni Mather Integrated Solar Thermal Combined Cycle Power Station is one of the most promising solar power projects in Africa.  The plant combines solar power and thermal power, has the production capacity of 450MW. African Development Bank, in partnership with the Global Environment Facility and Morocco’s National Electric Authority (ONE), financed approximately two-thirds of the cost of the plant.

Ain Beni Mather power plant, which is supplying electricity to the Moroccan grid, uses a cutting-edge design, combining a large array of parabolic mirror collectors concentrating sun energy and boosting the steam output needed to produce electricity. This area enjoys abundant sunshine and has enough water to cool the power station and clean the solar mirrors. It is close to both the Maghreb-Europe Gas Pipeline and the high voltage grid that will help to transmit the generated power.

Ouarzazate Solar Complex

The 580MW Solar Power Complex at Ouarzazate is the world’s largest solar thermal power plant. Built with an investment of more than USD 2.5 billion, the project was the first one to be implemented under the Moroccan Solar Plan. The project was funded by a consortium including the MASEN, World Bank, African Development Bank, and European investment banks.

The main feature of the CSP plants (Noor I, II, and III) is their integrated thermal storage using molten salts. This allows them to generate electricity for several hours after sunset, smoothing out energy production and providing power during peak evening demand. This makes the output more reliable and valuable than a standard solar farm without storage.