Technology group Wärtsilä has signed a five-year Maintenance Agreement covering 169,5 MW of power generation for two Moroccan power plants. The plants are owned and operated by the Office National de l’Electricité et de l’Eau potable (ONEE), Morocco‘s public utility in charge of the production, transport and distribution of electricity.

 This agreement is a renewal of a previous five-year contract for the power plants in Tan Tan and Dakhla, in southern Morocco. Each of these two emergency plants operates with Wärtsilä 46 engines. The scope of the agreement includes supply of spare parts, major overhauls, and full technical support. It takes effect in Q1, 2024, and will minimise the total cost of ownership of the plants’ Wärtsilä assets. 

“Our customers value maintenance agreements as they ensure the efficiency, reliability and availability of the power plants. We are proud to have been awarded a renewal of this agreement and continue our long-term relationship with ONEE,” comments Patrick Borstner, Director, Operations Africa at Wärtsilä Energy.

The Tan Tan and Dakhla plants are expected to be used to balance renewable energy production with sustainable fuels. Morocco is utilising an increasingly large share of renewable energy, and the Wärtsilä engine technology can reach full output in a matter of minutes to balance the intermittent supply of renewables.

Morocco also has an ambitious hydrogen development plan, for which the Wärtsilä engines could be converted to operate with eventually. ONEE is a long-established customer for Wärtsilä, and has, among its large number of production assets, two power plants operating with Wärtsilä engines in Tan Tan and Dakhla.