Morocco’s OCP Group receives €100mn green loan from the IFC

Morocco’s OCP Group, the world’s largest producer of phosphate-based fertilizer, has announced that it has secured a €100mn green loan from the International Finance Corporation (IFC).

The state-owned company said in an October 10 press release that it will use the money to build two solar power plants; this, in turn, will enable it to increase its production of low-carbon fertilizers.

OCP said that the new solar facilities will provide zero-emission power to its operations in the mining towns of Benguerir and Khouribga, which sit atop the world’s largest phosphate reserves.

The firm added that the plants will have a combined capacity of 400 megawatts peak (MWp), and up to 100 megawatt hours (MWh) of battery storage, making the initiative Morocco’s first large-scale solar photovoltaic project with integrated storage infrastructure.

The press release quoted the OCP Group’s chairman and CEO, Mostafa Terrab, as saying, ‘Today’s agreement is a major milestone towards our target of using 100% renewable energy in our fertilizer production by 2027. Our deepening collaboration with IFC reflects our alignment on the urgency of addressing the global challenges of food security and climate change simultaneously.’

The IFC, which is a member of the World Bank Group, also furnished OCP with a €100mn green loan in April of this year. That was invested in the construction of four solar power plants in Benguerir and Khouribga.