Morocco Expedites Implementation of “Noor Atlas”
Amid escalating energy challenges, Morocco aims to increase the number of regions hosting solar power stations to ten, with investments exceeding 2 million dirhams, by establishing a company to implement the “Noor Atlas Photovoltaic Solar Program.”
Last March, the government authorized the Moroccan Agency for Solar Energy (MASEN) to create a subsidiary named “Noor Atlas Energy Company S.A.” to manage, develop, and maintain a solar energy project comprising six stations with a total generation capacity of 291 megawatts across five different regions of the kingdom.
According to Decree No. 2.25.19 published in the official gazette, the assets of this company essentially include the “Noor Atlas Multi-Site Photovoltaic Solar Program,” which is expected to increase the number of regions hosting large-scale solar power stations to ten.
The decree indicates that this move contributes to “enhancing the spatial distribution of clean energy production capacities,” and it is anticipated that total investments under the “Noor Atlas” program will amount to approximately 2.775 million dirhams, to be mobilized through preferential loans from the German Reconstruction and Development Bank and the European Investment Bank, in addition to a supplemental loan from credit institutions in Morocco.
The same source emphasized that the establishment of this company aligns with “the kingdom’s objectives in the renewable energy sector aimed at developing a clean electricity production capacity of 6,000 megawatts by 2030, and striving towards the national target of raising the share of renewable energy to 52 percent of the energy mix by 2030.”
The decree, signed by the Minister of Economy and Finance, Nadia Fettah Alaoui, highlighted that the establishment of this company will have a capital of 300,000 dirhams in the form of a “joint-stock company” fully owned by “MASEN” or one of its subsidiaries.
It is noteworthy that the “Noor Atlas” program was transferred from the National Office for Water and Electricity to the Moroccan Agency for Solar Energy in 2021 to construct seven stations in the southern and eastern regions of Morocco, but it has faced delays in implementation since that time.
