Science/Tech

A solar power plant to bring energy in Morocco

By Lord Castillo | Update Date: Nov 24, 2015 10:32 AM EST

Next month, a solar power plant will power a Moroccan City.

The solar thermal plant at Ouarzazate will use the Sun's warmth to melt salt, which will hold its heat to power a steam turbine in the evening.

This is part of Morocco's aim to get 42% of its electricity from renewables by 2020.

UN has praised Morocco for their ambition. UK, a much richer country, is aiming for 30% by the same date.

The Ouarzazate solar thermal plant is built in Saudi Arabia and will be one of the world's biggest once it is complete.

Paddy Padmanathan of Saudi-owned ACWA Power, which is running the thermal project, said: "Whether you are an engineer or not, any passer-by is simply stunned by it.

"You have 35 soccer fields of huge parabolic mirrors pointed to the sky which are moveable so they will track the Sun throughout the day."

They say that the first phase of the project will bring energy to million people. It is part of a vision from Morocco's King Mohammed VI to turn his country into a renewable energy powerhouse. As part of its national commitment to the Paris climate conference, Morocco has pledged to decrease CO2 emissions by 32% below business-as-usual by 2030.

Paddy Padmanathan predicted: "If Morocco is able to generate electricity at seven, eight cents per kilowatt - very possible - it will have thousands of megawatts excess.

"It's obvious this country should be able to export into Europe and it will. And it will not need to do anything at all... it needs to do is just sit there because Europe will start to need it."

The cost of solar photovoltaic (PV) panels is falling much faster but the International Energy Agency expects them to play a part in an energy revolution wherein solar is the dominant source of electricity globally by 2050.

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