SeeNews Renewables
by Mariyana Yaneva
US solar panel manufacturer NanoPV technologies Inc plans to invest MAD 2 billion (USD 203m/ EUR 184.5m) to set up a production unit in Morocco by the end of the year.
The company has chosen to set up the factory in Tangier, a Moroccan port city on the Strait of Gibraltar, Moroccan daily L’Economiste reports.
The production site is expected to open 660 jobs.
According to its website, NanoPV is a US New Jersey based company with subsidiaries in Asia. It has thin film silicon solar panel manufacturing facilities as well as solar farms using NanoPV technologies in various locations in South East Asia. Most recently, it has completed a 100 MW solar cells production unit in Chennai, south India.
Moroccan news website Media24, on the other hand, is sceptical that the investment of NanoPV will be actually implemented. According to the media, the company, related to businessman Tarek Ben Laden, has not yet signed any contract or spent a single dirham to acquire property in Morocco.
The website reminded that last year Tarek Ben Laden announced intentions to invest MAD 1.5 billion in a project called Al Noor Tower – a proposed 540 metre skyscraper, the tallest ever building in Africa, to be built in Casablanca, Morocco. Since the announcement, over a year back, nothing has been done on the project.
Tangier in Morocco is a preferred location for manufacturers thanks to its proximity to Tangier Med cargo port which facilitates exports and logistics.
Earlier this year German engineering major Siemens (FRA:SIE) announced it will build an EUR-100-million-plus (USD 110m) wind turbine rotor blade factory in Tangier.
by Mariyana Yaneva
Mariyana is a founding member of the SeeNews Renewables team. With nine years of professional experience in renewables she has built strong expertise in the wind industry and French-speaking markets.
