Morocco is going Solar in the first solar power use of its kind. In a frame solar power agreement between the Kingdom of Morocco and France, the French Republic plans to award French industry, specifically Alstom, a contract for the solar power design, manufacture, construction, operation and maintenance of a very-high speed rail link between Tangier and Casablanca. Included in the solar power agreement, which should be finalized in 2008, Alstom will also build power generation facilities with a capacity of 470 megawatts to energize the solar rail link. While most of the capacity will come from standard gas combined cycle combustion, 20 megawatts will be from solar power solar panels - a first in the world.
A 183,000 square meter (45 acre) field of solar power solar panels will be built to supply the emission-free solar electricity. |