The relationship is again fixed beautiful

On 40 km of Ridge, 165 wind turbines stand for a few months off the Moroccan coast. With a production of 140 mega-watts, they can supply the equivalent of the nearby city of Tangier. "It is the largest wind farm in Africa", welcomed Loubna Farabi, responsible of the project. And this is just the beginning. In three months, the national agency of electricity (ONE), the Moroccan public electrician must launch a tender for a park of 1,000 mega-watts.

Of a coastline very exposed to wind, the country provides the installation of 2,000 megawatts of wind capacity by 2020. And taking advantage of a Sunshine rate 30 higher than that of the Spain, provides the same development in solar. "At the completion of these programs, the share of renewable energy in the total installed electrical power will reach 42 ", Wednesday said Amina Benkhadra, Minister of Moroccan power, at the signing of ONE with ten cooperation agreements, the French transport Manager, and Transgreen, Mediterranean networks initiative.

With the development in parallel of the hydraulic and thermal, the Moroccan authorities expect to a total investment of 11 billion between 2010 and 2015. The goal Reduce the energy dependency of the country, which is 18 of its electricity from the Spain, and respond to a request by 7 per year. "It is as if one added each year the consumption of the city of Rabat, which has 1 million inhabitants," according to Abdellah Griech, Director of hydropower and renewable in ONE.

These perspectives, French companies EDF, Alstom, Areva, GDF Suez and Veolia are on the front line. "We have a historical advantage in the Morocco, but will have to fight," says an official of a local subsidiary. Since the time when French companies were some of the contracts is over. The Kingdom is more autonomous with the France, which remains its largest trading partner, but whose market share has dropped from 24 in 2000 to 16 last year, according to Dominique Boquet, head of the Economic Department of the Embassy of France in the Morocco. The Spain and China instead grew.

Nuclear energy prospects

An example Alstom was historically the preferred turbine of ONE supplier. But he recently lost a market for the benefit of the Japanese Mitsubishi. The next tests are imminent. At the end of a screening which ends Monday, the country will launch a tender for a solar plant in Ouarzazate. And late October, he wants to decide between two consortia for a contract of $ 2 billion on 1,300 megawatts to Safi coal plant. The first includes Alstom, International Power (GDF Suez) and the Moroccan Nareva. The second incorporates Chinese Datang and EDF.

After a light cold between the French electrician and ONE, Henri Proglio, who had a very close with the Morocco relationship when he presided over Veolia, attempts to strengthen ties. He visited on several occasions in Rabat in recent months. The relationship is again fixed beautiful. "We see ourselves as the little sister of EDF," reflects Ali Fassi Fihri, Chief Executive of ONE.

What benefit also prospects in nuclear power. In July, the France and the Morocco signed a cooperation agreement for the civil atom. A call for tenders is expected between 2011 and 2014 for a 1,000 megawatt reactor.