Rabat – French energy-focused group Total Eren is launching a $10.6-billion (MAD 100 billion) green hydrogen and ammonia production plant in Morocco’s southern region Guelmim-Oued Nour.
Morocco’s investment watchdog, the Regional Commission of Investments (CRUI), greenlit the hydrogen project on November 25, 2021, according to sources cited by Agency Ecofin, an African business-focused news agency.
The project will have a production capacity of 10 GW from solar and wind plants in the region, specifies the same source.
The energy group had previously concluded evaluation studies on the renewable energy resources in the region. Over the next phase, the group will conduct further studies relating to the production facility and will seek out potential suppliers.
The Guelmim-Oued Nour project is not an isolated initiative. In recent years, Morocco has set up ambitious green energy targets, pledging to source 80% of its energy from renewable sources by 2050.
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At the end of 2020, 37% of Morocco’s electricity was sourced from renewable sources, below Morocco’s Paris Agreement target. However, the North African country is planning to generate 4 TWh (terawatt/hour) for the national market and export 10 TWh.
Morocco’s ambitious hydrogen production plans have the potential to transform Morocco into a global energy supplier within a decade, as an intern-governmental institute IRENA pointed out in January. Hydrogen production is also vital for the country’s booming fertilizer industry which is set to make Morocco the future “gatekeeper of the world’s food supply,” according to a recent Middle East Institute analysis.
Morocco’s green energy infrastructure benefits from Morocco’s climate, coupled with a strategic location and the strategic bilateral relations the North African kingdom fosters with other countries, according to the IRENA report.
While Morocco lags behind in terms of the number of patents related to hydrogen, low-production costs, and already-existing renewable production capacity will enable Morocco to attract further investments in the green market, explains the report.
