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Morocco steps up it's wind energy program to support use of renewable energy.

Sep 18, 2015 As one of the few countries in the Middle East and North African region with no hydrocarbons reserves, Morocco is one of the largest energy importers in the area. In its bid to tackle the increasing electricity demand, Morocco has put machinery in motion to support the development of renewable energy in the country.

The program aims to produce about 50 percent of the country’s energy from wind turbines by 2020 and will effectively reduce the country’s annual energy bills.

Morocco currently has 787 MW of installed wind generation capacity. According to officials, the country will generate up to 2,000 MW from wind power by 2020.

Speaking to reporter, Abdelkader Amara, the country’s minister for energy, mining, water and environment said:

“Today, renewable energies, mainly solar, wind and hydroelectric energies, are part of our energy portfolio because they allow to reduce the energy dependence of our country on the international level. When it comes to wind energy, our country is a leading one internationally because it has the best productivity. In some regions of Morocco, the cost could be lower than producing electricity from coal, which is unprecedented on the international level. We have a road map and by 2020, we will produce more than 200 GW from wind energy”.

According to a report released by the Global Wind Energy Council, Morocco stands as Africa’s top wind energy producer with an annual production of 787 MW. Egypt trails in second place with an annual production of 619 MW.

Third on the list is South Africa producing 570 MW, with Tunisia and Algeria coming 4th and 5th respectively.

With several wind farms built over the last few years, Morocco now boasts of the continent’s largest wind farm. This record has been further boosted by with the soon to be unveiled Tarfaya project.

Ali Fassi Fihri, Chairman of the country’s electricity and water utility company expressed optimism that the country’s energy generation strides will usher in greater investment opportunities.

“We have the entire dynamic started by the 13/09 law (official statute) that allows investors to build their own wind farms and sell high voltage electricity to their clients. We are very proud of the results we obtained in the wind energy sector. It was announced in the past few days that Morocco is ahead of the game in the African region and our ambition is stronger because we are aiming to be among the biggest producers of wind energy in the world,”

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