Morocco’s

ambitious

Noor Solar

Project

The first phase of the $9bn Noor Solar Project in the Moroccan Sahara is set to open in December. It will harness the sun’s warmth to store heat in molten salt and use it to generate electricity even after dark

SPAIN

Atlantic

Ocean

Rabat

MOROCCO

Ouarzazate

100km

ALGERIA

60 miles

Noor Solar

Project site:

Same size

as capital

Rabat

5km

3 miles

Noor 1:

Phase one

of four plants

Ouarzazate

SOLAR THERMAL PLANT

Parabolic mirrors:

Sunlight focuses

onto

absorber

tube

Absorber

Filled with

tube:

heat transfer fluid –

molten salt

Molten

Storage:

salt (393°C) fed

into tanks

Heat exchange:

Steam generated

from stored heat

Steam

Turbine:

drives turbine

which generates

electricity, initially

for three hours

MOROCCAN POWER

Dependent on imported

Now:

fossil fuels (electricity imported

from Spain)

42%

98%

Electricity generated from

By 2020:

own renewables

(potential to

re-export to Europe)

500,000 mirrors will

Noor 1:

generate 160MW of power