Morocco: Half a billion to implement the largest wind farm in Africa

Wind power generation farm, which will fill the gap energy in Morocco, will cost about half a billion euros, and will be erected in Tarfauya on the Atlantic coast, in partnership with Moroccan Nareva Energy Holding.

With a capacity of 300 megawatts, it is the largest project ever undertaken by GDF Suez in wind power gerneration and it alone will represent about 40% of the production capacity of wind power in Morocco, once it has been commissioned in late 2014, the French group said, cited by AFP.

"This is the largest wind farm across the African continent," and it will reinforce the country's goal to increase the share of renewables in its energy system to 40% by 2020, "said Mestrallet, CEO of GDF Suez, according to the same source.

The park has a load factor (average wind turbine operation) of 45%, thanks to strong wind field site in Tarfaya, well above the global average does for marine parks, more than 40%.

The ONEE will undertake, according to the French group to buy the electricity generated by the site, according to a purchase agreement for 20 years.

The Tarfaya project, at a total cost of 450 million euros, will be funded at 80% (360 million) through borrowings with Moroccan banks, and the rest equally on equity between GDF Suez and Nareva .

The cost "is less than a new coal plant," and it is "a means of generating electricity efficiently and effectively for the country," even though run just under the half the time, said Dirk Beeuwsaert, deputy director general of the group in charge of Energy International.

The park will be equipped with 131 wind turbines 80 meters high and with a unit capacity of 2.3 megawatts produced by the German company Siemens.

Morocco expects to achieve by 2020 a program of at least 2 gigawatts of wind energy and 2 gigawatts of solar energy.