Presenting the project, Moroccan Energy Minister Amina Benkhadra stressed that this national, ambitious and realistic project seeks to achieve a 2,000-megawatt capacity by 2020.

The minister explained that this production capacity accounts for 38% of the electric power reached at the end of 2008 and 14% of that expected in 2020.

Five sites have already been identified for the project, she said, adding that these sites are in the southern regions of Ouarzazate, Ain Bni Mathar, Foum Al Oued, Boujdour and Sebkhat Tah.

Further elaborating on the project, the managing director of the National Electricity Office (ONE), Ali Fassi Fihri, noted that this large-scale project will ensure an annual production capacity of 4500 GW, that is to say 18% of the current national production.

The first power station will be operational by the year 2015, he pointed out, adding that the whole project will be completed by the end of 2019.

“Thanks to the use of solar energy, this project will contribute to the reduction of energy dependency, the preservation of the environment, the diminution of greenhouse gas emissions, as well as the fight against climate change,” Fassi Fihri underlined.

The project is also expected to economize the equivalent of 1 million tons of oil a year and avoid the emission of 3.7 million tons of CO2, he added.

Hence, the realization of this project will be granted to a new body called “the Moroccan Agency for Solar Energy”, which will be in charge of all the technical, economic and financial studies. These studies will then be submitted to the investors to start their job.

For this purpose, a partnership agreement was signed by Economy Minister Salaheddine Mezouar, Energy Minister Amina Benkhadra and ONE's Ali Fassi Fihri.

On many occasions earlier, Moroccan officials had stressed that the production of energy and particularly renewable energy is one of the country's priorities.

The Director General of the Renewable Energy Development Centre (CDER), Said Mouline, had announced that Morocco intends to produce 12% of its energy needs by the year 2020, making use of its natural resources, mainly the wind and the sun.

In fact, Morocco's energy expenses weigh heavy on the government's budget. This is why it is making much effort to reduce this dependency of energy exports.