Morocco secures $265 million World Bank financing for major hydropower storage project

The World Bank’s Board of Directors has approved $265 million in financing for the Ifahsa Pumped Hydropower Storage Project in Morocco, supporting one of Africa’s largest clean-energy storage projects.

Located near Chefchaouen in northern Morocco, the project is designed to enhance the reliability and resilience of the country’s electricity grid by providing flexible energy storage that supports the integration of additional renewable power. The World Bank said the project will help deliver a more reliable, affordable, and lower-carbon electricity supply to households and businesses.

The pumped hydropower facility will store excess electricity generated from solar and wind sources by pumping water to an upper reservoir during periods of high renewable energy production. The stored water can then be released through turbines to generate electricity when demand rises or renewable generation declines.

The 300-megawatt facility is expected to enable Morocco to integrate at least one gigawatt of additional solar and wind capacity into the national grid while helping attract around $1 billion in private investment.

According to the World Bank, the project will also displace around 3 terawatt-hours of fossil-fuel-based electricity generation annually, reducing carbon dioxide emissions by an estimated 1.7 million tonnes.

The initiative is also expected to support local economic development. During construction, the project is projected to create approximately 820 direct jobs annually, while the additional renewable energy capacity it enables is expected to generate further employment opportunities across Morocco’s energy sector.

The World Bank added that greater access to cleaner electricity could strengthen the competitiveness of Moroccan businesses as global markets increasingly favor low-carbon supply chains.