Morocco shortens solar plant list to four

Masen Ouarzazate CSP Pre-Qualification shortlists four IPP consortia to design, finance, build, operate, and maintain a thermal solar plant in Morocco, with RFPs due January 2011 and capacity growing from 125 MW to 500 MW.

Morocco has preselected four out of 19 consortia that presented bids to develop the first phase of a 500 megawatt solar energy project south of the country, the agency managing the project Masen said.

Masen, as part of the country's solar initiative led by the government, named the four pre-selected consortia as:

• Abeinsa ICI, Abengoa Solar, Mitsui and Abu Dhabi National Energy Co.

• Enel and ACS SCE

• International Company for Water and Power ACWA, Aries IS and TSK EE

• Orascom Construction Industries, Solar Millennium and Evonik Steag.

The pre-qualification process invited bids for a solar station to select independent power producers that would design, finance, build, operate and maintain a thermal solar plant in the southern city of Ouarzazate.

The 15 rejected consortia comprised among other firms GE Oil and Gas, Alstom Power, which previously landed a windfarm project in Morocco, Mitsubishi Corp, SNC-Lavalin Inc., International Power, Lockheed Martin, JGC Corp, Daewoo Engineering and Nareva Holding, owned by a company in which the Moroccan royal family is the biggest shareholder.

Masen said it would send pre-qualified bidders requests for proposals toward the end of January 2011, as regional markets saw a Jordanian consortium raising money for a solar plant as well.

Plans call for the Ouarzazate unit to start off as a 125 megawatt unit and then, as part of Morocco's 2,000 MW solar project plan to expand capacity, undergo gradual upgrades to reach 500 MW before the end of 2015.

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