Progress on the future electric motorway between Dakhla and Casablanca
The future electric motorway between Dakhla and Casablanca is a very important project and steps are being taken to make it a reality.
The National Office for Water and Electricity (ONEE) has revealed the list of pre-qualified developers for the construction of the future 3 gigawatt (GW) Dakhla-Casablanca very high voltage (VHV) electricity transmission infrastructure. Thus, at the end of the pre-qualification phase, five potential candidates were selected. These are Grid Solutions SAS, Larsen & Toubro Limited, PowerChina Sepco 1 Electric Power Construction, Siemens Energy and Tbea Co. In order to allow potential project developers the necessary time to form potential consortia, ONEE has extended the deadline for submission of application files under the ‘BOOT’ (Build-Own-Operate-Transfer) scheme.
In line with this, topographical studies have already begun to define the route of the first very high voltage electrical connection between the city of Western Sahara and the largest city in the Moroccan kingdom.
The Moroccan National Office of Water and Electricity (ONEE) commissioned the engineering and surveying company Géo-Amane to carry out the topographical survey of the corridor where the 3 gigawatt Oued Lakraâ-Marrakech electricity grid and the Oued Lakraâ terminal station will be located for a total amount of 5.3 million dirhams, just over 511,000 euros.
Géo-Amane, a surveying and engineering company based in Casablanca that participates in important infrastructure and development projects in Morocco, carrying out complete commissions for construction and infrastructure projects in collaboration with other international engineering consultancies and surveying offices, won the tender contract against other companies such as Master Elec, Bretel and Katytrav thanks to its more competitive and advantageous offer for the Moroccan State.
Géo-Amane won both lots in the tender that was launched last December. The first lot, relating to the Oued Lakraâ/Tan-Tan section, was awarded to this newly created company for almost 3 million dirhams, while the second (the Tan-Tan/Marrakech section) was awarded to the same company for 2.3 million. This brings the total for the whole section to 5.3 million dirhams.
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Géo-Amane will be responsible for carrying out topographical studies to define the route of the future Oued Lakraâ-Marrakech very high voltage power line, which will be approximately 1,100 kilometres long, and the Oued Lakraâ terminal station. The topographical study of the Oued Lakraâ/Tan-Tan section will cover a route of approximately 600 kilometres and the Oued Lakraâ terminal station, while the second lot will affect the Tan Tan-Marrakech section over a length of almost 500 kilometres.
In accordance with the technical specifications of ONEE, the route study will include a ground survey of the route in the presence of a ONEE representative and the search for the optimal route for the future electrical connection based on the indications of the preliminary project established by ONEE.
The first phase of the very high voltage project envisages a capacity of 1.5 gigawatts and should be completed by 2026. Meanwhile, the second phase is expected to be available in 2028, also with a capacity of 1.5 gigawatts, until the total capacity of the very high voltage line between Dakhla and Casablanca reaches 3 gigawatts.
The aim of the project is to supply electricity to the enclaves in the regions through which this very high voltage electric highway passes. It will also allow the distribution of electricity generated through renewable energy from facilities in the south of the Moroccan kingdom, known for being an area with very good characteristics for the generation of renewable energies such as wind or solar.
The head of government, Aziz Akhannouch, emphasised the strategic importance of this project and announced that it would be completed more quickly.
This project is key because the commissioning of the various seawater desalination plants planned to alleviate the water shortage in Morocco in the face of the established structural drought will require electricity from renewable sources. The project connecting the south and centre of the country to the grid will enable these future desalination plants to be supplied by solar and wind farms in the south of the North African country.
Development of the southern provinces
This electricity project is part of the Moroccan state's strategy to develop its so-called southern provinces to the maximum, including Western Sahara, a territory claimed by Morocco as part of its own.
Morocco is proposing an Autonomy Plan for Western Sahara that would leave this territory under Moroccan sovereignty with ample room for manoeuvre and self-government for the Saharawi, respecting the resolutions of the United Nations (UN) with a view to resolving once and for all the Saharawi dispute, which has lasted for almost five decades since the end of the Spanish colonial period.
The Moroccan kingdom aims to develop Western Sahara to the maximum with great economic and social progress under a major investment plan that favours territorial development, thus taking advantage of the immense possibilities offered by the enclave, including the potential for renewable energy thanks to the location and characteristics of the territory, which are very favourable for the development of the solar and wind industries.
