Investment firm Invest International has provided a loan to engineering firm Proton Ventures to support the construction of a 4 t/d green ammonia plant in Jorf Lasfar, Morocco.

The pilot project will be equipped with both a polymer electrolyte membrane and alkaline electrolyser with a capacity of 2MW each and will start operation in early 2024. It will also be equipped with an “emulator” that can simulate different electrical load profiles, in particular a mix of solar and wind power.

The plant will use the Haber-Bosch process to convert hydrogen and nitrogen to ammonia.

“As Europe would in the future need to bring energy from overseas, Morocco is a great place for large-scale hydrogen production as they have a lot of wind, sun and land, which is what we don’t have in northern Europe,” says Joost Oorthuizen, CEO at Invest International.

Invest International did not respond to a query from Hydrogen Economist on the size of the loan at the time of writing.

“Morocco is a great place for large-scale hydrogen production” Oorthuizen, Invest International

The project is a joint venture between Proton Ventures, Moroccan fertiliser company OCP Group and universities the Institute of Research in Solar Energy and New Energies and University Mohammed VI Polytechnic. The partners aim to develop knowledge that can be used in larger-scale projects that are currently being developed by several international players in our territory and internationally.

“This industrial scale research facility will provide unique operational insights which benefits further expansions in and outside Morocco as well as boosting the education of more hydrogen and ammonia experts,” says Paul Baan, CEO of Proton Ventures.

Developing sector

The IEA hydrogen projects database lists three green hydrogen projects in Morocco that aim to start operating by 2025.

The nation has created a National Hydrogen Commission and signed a memorandum of understanding with Germany in June 2020 to develop its hydrogen sector.

Based purely on production costs, an analysis by market analytics firm Aurora Energy Research predicts Morocco-produced green hydrogen from solar co-located with electrolysers will be the cheapest location for low-carbon hydrogen exports to the EU in 2030.

Political risk in Morocco, particularly over the disputed Western Sahara region, may deter some investors from the country, according to a research note from consultancy Verisk Maplecroft.

The note adds that authorities in Morocco may still decide to use cheap hydrogen production for its domestic fertiliser industry rather than targeting exports to the EU.

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Author: Tom Young