UAE’s AMEA Power wins contract to build two solar plants in Morocco

Company to construct new stations as part of the first phase of the Noor PV II programme in the North African country

Solar mirrors at the Noor 1 Concentrated Solar Power Station in Ouarzazate, Morocco. UAE's AMEA Power will build two solar plants with a capacity of 36 megawatts each. Photo: Dewa

Dubai-based AMEA Power has won a contract to build two solar power plants in Morocco as the North African country continues to boost its renewables portfolio.

The solar projects were awarded to AMEA Power as part of a large international tender launched by the Moroccan Agency for Sustainable Energy (Masen) and the Ministry of Energy Transition and Sustainable Development to construct the first phase of the multi site solar energy Noor PV II programme, which has a total capacity of 330 megawatts.

As part of the contract, AMEA Power will build two solar plants with a capacity of 36 megawatts each, at Taroudant, in the Souss-Massa region, and in El Hajeb, in the Fes-Meknes region, state news agency Wam reported on Wednesday.

"The Noor PV II programme supports Morocco's target to increase its renewables share to 52 per cent by 2030,” said AMEA Power's chairman Hussain Al Nowais.

“We look forward to supporting the country in achieving its objective and diversifying its energy mix."

The award of the new contract comes as countries around the world continue to focus on building new renewable plants to cut emissions. Global renewable generation capacity rose 9 per cent to 3,064 gigawatts in 2021 amid the green transition push, a report by the International Renewable Energy Agency this month said.

Morocco aims to attract about $30 billion in investment to its energy sector by 2030, and hopes to add 10 gigawatts of renewable capacity and develop a liquefied natural gas plant to meet its growing power needs.

AMEA Power, which currently produces about 2,000 megawatts of clean energy through solar and wind energy plants in 15 countries, plans to raise its output to 5,000MW in the next three years. It is also building a 100MW solar plant in Tunisia.

Abu Dhabi-based Masdar is also investing in Morocco. The clean energy company, in partnership with the National Office of Electricity and Drinking Water, has set up a Solar Home System Project to provide energy to nearly 20,000 homes in more than 1,000 rural towns across Morocco.

Masdar is also part of an international consortium that won a tender to construct an 800MW solar power plant in Morocco.

The consortium, which includes France's EDF Renewables and Green of Africa, based in Casablanca, won the award for the design, financing, construction, operation and maintenance of the first phase in the Noor Midelt project.