Work begins on 160MW Noor 1 CSP project in Morocco

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Reddit
Email

Construction of the 160MW Noor 1 CSP project has officially started following a ground breaking ceremony held on 10 May attended by King Mohammed VI.

Located in Souss-Massa-Draa, Ouarzazate, Morocco, the project represents the first solar project to be developed for the Moroccan Agency for Solar Energy (MASEN) and is the first in a series of several planned developments at the Noor 1 Solar Complex. MASEN has plans to install a total of 500MW at the Noor 1 complex incorporating several utility-scale solar power plants using various solar technologies.

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Unlock unlimited access for 12 whole months of distinctive global analysis

Photovoltaics International is now included.

  • Regular insight and analysis of the industry’s biggest developments
  • In-depth interviews with the industry’s leading figures
  • Unlimited digital access to the PV Tech Power journal catalogue
  • Unlimited digital access to the Photovoltaics International journal catalogue
  • Access to more than 1,000 technical papers
  • Discounts on Solar Media’s portfolio of events, in-person and virtual

Or continue reading this article for free

According to Saudi Arabia-based ACWA Power International, the project will represent the first utility-scale solar thermal plant in Morocco.

The project will be developed on a build, own, operate and transfer (BOOT) basis by ACWA Power Ouarzazate while EPC services will be carried out by a consortium consisting of TSK Electrónica y Electicidad, Acciona Infrastructuras, Acciona Ingeniería and Sener Ingeniería y Sistemas. As part of the contract, the consortium will procure some of the components from Morocco.

The plant is scheduled to become commercially operational in the second half of 2015. When complete, operation and maintenance services will be provided by a consortium led by NOMAC, a subsidiary of ACWA Power.

Output from the plant will be purchased by MASEN under a 25-year power purchase agreement worth US$1 billion.

Mohammed A. Abunayyan, chairman of ACWA Power stated: “We at ACWA Power are proud of the fruitful cooperation with the concerned Moroccan entities, in both public and private sectors, and here I would like to commend the professional efforts of MASEN, which managed the tender with full transparency in a record time and the ability to collect and manage a mixture of international financial institutions that each and every one of them had different and special requirements.”

Abunayyan continued: “We have been able, through this project, to effectively participate in the Kingdom of Morocco’s renewable energy strategy which has become a model for the development of renewable energy industry in terms of technology, implementation and cost.”

The project is being supported by the German government which has provided €115 million (US$149 million) for the project, of which €15 million is from KfW bank while the remaining €100 million is from low-interest loans from Germany’s Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development.

Read Next

May 22, 2025
The New York State Energy and Research Development Authority (NYSERDA) has contracted 2.2GW of solar PV across 18 projects.
May 22, 2025
SMA Solar will begin local assembly of power systems for large-scale solar and energy storage systems in the US.
May 22, 2025
Prefabricated solar structure provider 5B has become the first recipient of the Australian government’s AU$1 billion Solar Sunshot Program, securing up to AU$46 million for its “Maverick” automated solar deployment system.
May 21, 2025
There is potential for cPPAs to deliver the energy transition, according to speakers at the Renewables Procurement and Revenue Summit.
May 21, 2025
US PV module manufacturer Silfab Solar has acquired a patent portfolio for back-contact (BC) solar cells from solar research firm EnPV.
May 21, 2025
The US International Trade Commission has voted unanimously to impose AD/CVD tariffs on solar cells from Southeast Asia.

Subscribe to Newsletter

Upcoming Events

Solar Media Events
June 17, 2025
Napa, USA
Solar Media Events
July 1, 2025
London, UK
Solar Media Events
July 1, 2025
London, UK
Solar Media Events
July 8, 2025
Asia
Solar Media Events
September 16, 2025
Athens, Greece