Converting the Sahara Desert into an "Energy Oasis:" Morocco Nears Completion of the World's Largest Solar Power Plant

Posted by: Krishna Vansadia

Morocco inaugurated the Phase I i.e. 160 MW of concentrated solar power plant called Noor in Saharan Desert in 2016 and recently commissioned the phase II i.e. 200 MW and will commission phase III i.e. 360 MW later in 2018. This plant on completion of its phase III would be the largest solar power plant in the world. The plant is large enough that it can be seen from space.

Morocco currently relies on imported sources for 97 percent of its energy consumption, according to the World Bank, which helped fund the Noor power plant project. Investing in renewable energy will make Morocco less reliant on those imports as well as reduce the nation's long-term carbon emissions by millions of tons. The goal is that renewables will power half of this country by 2040.

The plant is similar to large-scale plants located in the Mohave Desert in the U.S. Solar thermal power plants capture the sun's energy as heat, then convert water into steam and turn turbines. This plant doesnot use the traditional photovoltic cells to store energy like the traditional roof top units which fails to provide uninterruped energy source and depends highly on the weather and availability of sunlight. However, this plant doesn't stop delivering energy even at nighttime or when clouds obscure the sun as the heat from the fluid can be stored in a tank of molten salts.


For additional information:

Morocco Unveils A Massive Solar Power Project: https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/02/04/465568055/morocco-unveils-a-massive-solar-power-plant-in-the-sahara
Photo: Fadel Senna/AFP/Getty Images

Morocco turns the Sahara desert into a Solar Energy Oasis: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/morocco-turns-the-sahara-desert-into-a-solar-energy-oasis