Laayoune desalination plant is set to undergo approximately MAD 400 million expansion works and be put into operation in the course of the month according to the Morrocan Minister of Equipment and Water, Nizar Baraka.
The latter made the revelation at the plenary session of the House of Councilors on April 12, saying that the project would add about 26,000 cubic meters of water per day to the plant that currently supplies 26,000 cubic meters of water per day in the region.Â
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Upon completion, the Laayoune desalination plant expansion project will raise the capacity of the saltwater desalination facility in Morocco’s southern provinces that strives to protect the agricultural ecosystem while also providing a reliable water supply, to approximately 62,000 cubic meters owing to the additional 10,000 cubic meters of underground water.
Other desalination plants under construction in Morocco than the Laayoune Desalination Plant
In Casablanca, the ministry is also working on the world’s largest seawater desalination plant, with a budget of MAD 9.5 billion. The project, which is expected to be operational by the end of 2027, will produce roughly 300 million cubic meters of water each year.
Baraka further mentioned that a partnership agreement was reached between the OCP Group and the National Office of Electricity and Drinking Water (ONEE) to boost the production capacity of the seawater desalination facilities in Safi and Jorf Lasfar, near El Jadida.
Heavy rains increase the capacity of dams in the North African country
Morocco had heavy rains in March and April after months of drought. Baraka emphasized that the recent rains contributed to filling dams across the country and alleviating water scarcity in a number of regions.
The volume of water in the reservoirs of Morocco’s main dams has already surpassed 5.52 billion cubic meters, according to the ministry. However, the minister raised an alarm about the potential for summer water shortages, particularly in Morocco’s northern areas. He claimed that Africa’s biggest desalination plant, located near Agadir in Chtouka Aitbaha, has helped improve drinking water coverage in the Souss-Massa region.
