Morocco is one of the world’s top 5 future leaders in floating wind power. This is reflected in the ranking of the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC).
The Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) has released a report outlining the best opportunities floating offshore wind represents around the world. In this report, he highlights the powerful role that floating offshore wind could have over the next decade in the global goals of reducing dependence on fossil fuels such as gas, coal and oil. Countries are banking on technology to achieve “zero emissions” by 2050.
The Council has defined a set of criteria to assess market potential and readiness in more than 100 countries. The result is an initial shortlist of 30 countries, all of which have strong potential. Morocco, Ireland, Italy, the Philippines and the west coast of the United States are designated as the first five future leaders of floating wind power for the next decade. With the most mature floating markets — the UK, South Korea, France and Japan — they could spearhead the next wave of floating wind.
In Morocco, the best wind resources are found in the South while the population is rather concentrated in the North. However, the city of Agadir is near the highest wind speeds, the report notes. “Wind speeds off the Moroccan coast vary considerably, with winds as low as 5 m/s by the main cities Casablanca and Rabat, while areas of the Strait of Gibraltar and along the southern part of the Atlantic coast have average wind speeds above 10 m/s”.
According to the report’s authors, the largest area with access to high wind speeds is off the southern Atlantic coast, where water depths drop sharply near the shore and are usually between 60 and 500 meters. , which is an ideal area for setting up offshore wind farms. “The global race to develop this technology is already on, and these countries can catch up with current market leaders if they put the right policy in place now,” they say.
