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Guelmim-Oued Noun is one of the 12 regions in the kingdom of Morocco. Given that it links the desert to the ocean, it is regarded by desert travelers as the entryway from the Sahara to Morocco. The land mass covers an area of 46,108 km2. As a result of the 2014 census, the population totaled 433,757. Regions Souss-Massa and Laâyoune-Sakia El Hamra are on each side of Guelmim-Oued Noun. The latter to the south and the former to the northeast. It is bordered to the east by the Tindouf Province of Algeria and to the southeast by the Tiris Zemmour Region of Mauritania. Guelmim-Oued Noun was formed in 2015 by merging a group of regions. It is made up of four provinces; Assa-Zag Province, Guelmim Province, Sidi Ifni Province, and Tan-Tan Province. Only Morocco has coastlines exposed to both the Atlantic and Mediterranean Seas in Africa. Morocco controls around two-thirds of the phosphate reserves in the world, which are used to make fertilizers and other products. Most of the electricity in the nation is generated by thermal power plants.
Solar Farm
Green energy production statistics
Guelmim-Oued Noun and Morocco at large are fast becoming green energy power hubs. According to the Global Energy Monitor, it has the third-largest solar and wind capacity in the Arab World currently. It is anticipated to climb to number 2 on the list. With 1.9 GW of installed solar and wind capacity, it trails the UAE (2.6 GW), which is third in the region, and Egypt (3.5 GW), which is first. This leaves the Arab world with over 12GW of green energy, showing that the Arabs are speedily gunning for renewables. Furthermore, the Arab region plans to produce 73GW from new projects. These initiatives will more than double the region’s present capacity, enabling it to meet 91% of the Arab League’s 2030 renewable energy ambitions. The upcoming projects consist of 45 wind farms and 114 solar farms that are “markedly huge.” The top three countries which include Morocco are expected to produce 39.7 GW from planned projects. In particular, Morocco is predicted to create 14.4 GW more solar and wind energy over the following five years, which is six times the country’s projected gas project capacity. The Global Energy Monitor report states that Saudi Arabia, Algeria, and Morocco all have green hydrogen projects planned that are aimed at international markets.
Guelmim-Oued Noun likely to become the most important source of green energy for Europe
According to International Energy Agency in 2018, even though fossil fuels and renewable energy sources are abundant in Africa, sub-Saharan Africa has the lowest global rates of energy access, with just roughly 50% of its people having access to power. However, Morocco seeks to become a world leader in renewable energy through its proposed solar and wind farms. Morocco’s energy policy was created in reaction to climate change, particularly that brought on by the energy sector’s operations. This has decreased energy imports drastically. Morocco is on track to meet its goal of obtaining 52% of its energy from renewable sources by 2030. This strategy’s main goals are to provide supply security and widespread, affordable access to energy. Meanwhile, together with the European Union, Morocco might play a significant role in the establishment of a Mediterranean energy hub in southern Europe, ensuring the security of the energy supply for both Europe and the rest of the world. The Kingdom is ideally positioned to realize its goal of becoming a true energy center thanks to its advantageous geographic location with access to the Mediterranean and a very long coastline on the Atlantic.
The benefits of solar energy in Guelmim are widespread and have a good effect not only on the nation but also on the entire African continent. The region’s level of poverty has significantly declined in recent years, and the standard of living for the citizens should rise as solar energy becomes more plentiful since it makes electricity more accessible and affordable. Economically, by enabling Morocco to export more energy and reduce its reliance on energy imports, solar energy boosts the country’s economy and relations with other countries. Through Guelmim, Morocco could have access to thriving markets and new economic prospects due to connections with other countries. Also, Morocco has spent 85% of its foreign cash in other African nations to strengthen its leadership position and the continent’s faltering economies. Furthermore, when examining renewable energy, the favorable effects on the environment are frequently taken into account. The nation has made significant investments in the fight against global warming and the environmental problem.
The world’s largest undersea cable to originate from Guelmim
Morocco has already made progress in forming a partnership with Europe, the United Kingdom (UK) in particular. The UK plans to tap solar energy from Guelmim-Oued Noun to Britain via underground cables under the seabed. Four 3,800 km long cables would be used to transport the renewable energy produced in the region’s effective wind and solar farms to the UK. Energy could be sent directly to the UK through the direct power connection, and 20 GWh of battery storage would guarantee a consistent flow of clean energy to the British Isles. Lithium-ion batteries, like those used in electric automobiles, residential battery systems, and utility-scale storage projects all over the world, will primarily offer this. British renewables startup Xlinks unveiled this proposal just recently. A region the size of Greater London would be covered by the planned location in Guelmim-Oued Noun, which is ideal for setting up wind and solar farms due to its continuous sunny and windy weather and its proximity to Europe. The projected wind and solar farm will span 1,500 km2. Solar panels will cover 200 km2 of this space. Compared to Britain’s 1,500 annual hours, the location has 3,500 hours of sunshine yearly. This remarkable plan involves the deployment of 530 wind turbines and nearly 12 million solar panels.
Given that Morocco is located south of Portugal, which until very recently had the world record for the lowest solar power bid, there are excellent reasons to believe that a large-scale development will result in the delivery of highly inexpensive power. The natural resources of Morocco provide three times as much energy as those of the UK. The project costs approximately £18 billion to execute.
Guelmim-Oued Noun region is good for investments
The Guelmim region offers plenty of space and ample sunlight, making it a desirable location for the construction of big solar power plants. It meets all the important criteria for siting these solar farms. Investments done in here would be very profitable both on a short and long-term basis. Due to its abundance of natural resources, the area has the potential to draw significant projects from both the national public and private sectors and foreign capital and investments.
Due to its geographical location, Guelmim experiences significant solar radiation exposure. The region’s solar arrays are renowned for being among the largest in the world. The Global Horizontal Irradiance (GHI), which is 20% higher than Spain’s and more than twice as high as the UK’s, is the third highest in all of North Africa, Even in the winter when days are shorter, there are still more than 10 hours of daylight. Photovoltaic systems typically require sun irradiation in the amount of 1100 kWh m-2 per year in order to be commercially feasible. Guelmim has the potential to generate 1780kWh m-2 per year. This makes it a good site for the installation of solar panels and a profitable venture for potential investors.
With a part of Guelmim-Oued Noun located in the Sahara, there is an abundance of desert land that could be used to construct vast solar farms. When setting up a solar farm, there should be at least 700 hectares (1729.738 acres) of free unused land and this is available in the region of Guelmim. Also, more land means more solar panels which also translates to more money. If 1 acre of solar panels produces approximately 351 MWh of electrical energy per year, which in turn gives 14,000$ of profit per acre. Therefore, 1730 acres of land will produce 256,230 MWh of electricity thus giving 24,220,000$ of profit. (1 Hectare = 2.47 Acres)
Morocco has economic and political stability suitable for foreign investors. The nation is currently among the top 10 Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) recipients in Africa. European countries have a continuous demand for energy, which makes them seek reliable partner nations where energy can be gotten at an affordable price. With the political trustworthiness of Guelmim, the UK and other countries can safely do business in the area.
The UK-Guelmim solar energy project has the potential to create jobs for Moroccan citizens. Nearly 10,000 local jobs will be created, 2,000 of which will be permanent. By 2024, 1,350 permanent jobs are anticipated to be created by the cable production facilities that will be constructed in the UK as part of the project. Additionally, Xlinks has taken an inclusive stance toward the local people and will guarantee that these populations will completely benefit from the Project’s socioeconomic good outcomes through local development programs. The boost in the labor market will create new economic opportunities. This gives entrepreneurs access to launch new activities in Guelmim.
The development that will be created as a result of the thriving solar plant industry will open the way for multiple vendors and specialists to move into the area. This will pave the way for exponential growth, more investments, and more renewable energy exports
The new solar farms are going to add a reasonable amount of energy every year to the national grid, making it easier to obtain, more dependable, and more reasonably priced. This implies that the majority of the citizens can now connect. This in addition to job creation will lead to economic development, reduced emigration, and a rush of people into Guelmim. This will project the area as a potential site for investment both in energy and other industries.
Furthermore, with the region’s renewable energy production, a lot of carbon credits can be generated and sold to other countries to clear their carbon footprints. With the new project in Guelmim especially, investors can purchase enough carbon credits to sell which will generate profits.
In the nation’s quest for green energy, notable people have engaged themselves in ensuring that the target of 100% renewable energy is met. One of them is Princess Lalla Hasna of Morroco, sister to King Mohammed VI. Since her childhood, Princess Hasna has been interested in social and cultural activities, with a special emphasis on environmental issues in Morocco. She holds the honorary office as president of the Hassanate Association for Human Development.
Energy generation to be privatized
Recently, the Moroccan house of representatives has adopted a bill approving the self-production of electricity. This was disclosed by the nation’s Ministry of Energy Transition and Sustainable Development. The creation of this legislation draft is a component of the implementation of the national energy strategy and the New Development Model’s recommendations, particularly those that deal with the growth of decentralized electricity production and raising the competitiveness of the electricity industry. The project, which was created in 2020, aims to guarantee the self-generation of electrical energy for individual consumption as well as govern the activity regardless of the production source, the network’s structure, the level of voltage, and the installed capacity. All these will be done while maintaining the integrity of the national power grid and upholding the principles of transparency and non-discrimination among all parties involved. In addition to the freedom to sell excess energy to network operators, the proposed law on the self-production of electrical energy also grants access to services for electrical energy storage for the first time. The initiative is anticipated to contribute to the creation of new employment possibilities in a variety of industries associated with energy, such as the upkeep of manufacturing facilities.
Final thoughts
Renewable energy is expanding and making a larger and larger contribution to the global energy mix. Morocco is well aware of the environmental and climatic difficulties the globe is experiencing and is not just focused on the economic and political potential of its energy policy. The Green Generation 2020–2030 plan, which aims to develop the agricultural sector by promoting irrigation water conservation and reducing the Kingdom’s reliance on rain-fed farming, was one of several green programs that Morocco launched at the beginning of this year intending to address the global significance of these climate issues. This puts the nation on a high pedestal. Guelmim has made several measures intended to build strong foundations for economic growth as a result of its dedication to the concepts of sustainable development in the economy, society, and environment.
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References
https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/content/morocco-solar-farm-power-big-as-paris/
https://xlinks.co/morocco-uk-power-project/
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