Renewable energy: Morocco put on a green future

Morocco was among the first African countries to engage in a strategy of promoting renewable energy including solar and wind that will allow, in the medium term, a diversification of energy sources, with the ultimate aim to lift the dependence vis -à-vis conventional sources of energy.

As part of this ambitious plan, two major initiatives were launched, namely the Solar Plan with an investment of 70 billion dirhams and the Wind Plan (31.5 billion dirhams). This will enable Morocco to save 2.5 million tonnes of oil equivalent in fossil fuel, or 10 billion dirhams in annual expenditure.

Morocco, which imports from 15 to 20 pc of its electricity from Spain, also aims at enhancing the contribution of hydropower in its energy mix through the construction of two new-generation power plants with a capacity of 550 MW.