Abu Dhabi-based Masdar says that it has won a contract for the design, financing, construction, operation and maintenance of the Noor Midelt Phase 1 multi-technologies solar power plant.
Masdar will execute the contract with its consortium partners, EDF Renewables and Green of Africa. Construction of the project is expected to begin in the last quarter of 2019, while energy will be delivered to the grid in 2022.
The 800 MW plant will be located 20 km north of the town of Midelt in central Morocco. It will use both photovoltaic (PV) and concentrating solar power (CSP) technologies, according to the Moroccan agency for sustainable energy (Masen).
The project is funded by European Investment Bank, the French Development Agency, the European Commission, the World Bank, the African Development Fund and the Clean Technology Fund. On completion, it will provide dispatchable solar energy during the day and until five hours after sunset for a record-low tariff at peak hours of 0.68 Moroccan dirhams per kilowatt-hour.
Masdar CEO Mohamed Jameel Al Ramahi said: “We are honoured to leverage our global expertise and experience in CSP and PV technologies as part of the consortium chosen to develop the Noor Midelt Phase 1 multi-technologies solar power plant.
“We applaud Morocco’s bold renewable energy vision and its commitment to the large-scale development of a groundbreaking technology combining solar power with storage, which will achieve new levels of cost and operational efficiency.
“This project marks a key step in the transition of renewable energy from its traditional peak-shaving role in meeting power demand to becoming a baseload electricity provider in the future.”
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