Masen launches an international market for a battery test facility at Noor Ouarzazate, with a projected budget of $3.25 million

Masen launches an international tender for a battery test facility at Noor Ouarzazate, with a budget of $3.25 million

The public entity responsible for renewable energy, the Moroccan Agency for Sustainable Energy (Masen), has issued an international tender (Notice OP00475205) for the design, supply, and installation of an industrial-scale battery electricity storage test facility on its Noor Ouarzazate (center) research platform, under a program funded by a $3.95 million (38.87 million dirhams) donation administered by the World Bank.

The tender covers the complete technical design of the facility, procurement of equipment, electrical and civil works related to their installation, operational testing, commissioning, and training of the teams responsible for operating the site. Masen requires a complete system capable of subjecting multiple battery storage technologies to controlled test conditions and measuring their technical characteristics. The facility constitutes experimental infrastructure dedicated to evaluating industrial battery systems, separate from any electricity generation destined for the national grid.

Masen launches an international tender for a battery test facility at Noor Ouarzazate, with a provisional budget of $3.25 million

The World Bank had included, in its tender plan dated May 20, 2025, a budget of $3.25 million (31.98 million dirhams) for equipment acquisition, under reference MA-MASEN-490518-GO-RFB. The institution had reserved a second provisional budget of $200,000 (1.97 million dirhams) for engineering, design, and supervision services for the platform. These two amounts correspond to estimates established during program preparation, the final market price to be determined through competitive bidding.

The tender placed significant emphasis on the quality of bids, allocating 70% of the evaluation score to technical and non-financial criteria, versus 30% to price. This weighting reflects the importance placed on the installation’s characteristics, the supplier’s ability to conduct the expected tests, and the technical services required for its operation. The winning bidder will be responsible for personnel training and acceptance tests prior to the delivery of a fully operational equipment set.

Masen launches an international market for a battery test facility at Noor Ouarzazate, with a projected budget of $3.25 million.

The facility will allow comparison, under identical conditions, of technologies offered by different manufacturers. Characteristics displayed in commercial catalogs vary depending on usage conditions, temperatures, or charge and discharge cycles. Independent tests will help buyers measure discrepancies between equipment, then select solutions best suited to Morocco’s power system needs.

The installation will compare several storage solutions under conditions close to their industrial use. Tests will focus on their electrical behavior, safety, compatibility with grids, and performance under Morocco’s climate. The program will provide future battery buyers with independent technical data, useful for evaluating risks, costs, and equipment characteristics before large-scale acquisition.

World Bank preparatory studies conducted in 2�24 envisaged a cumulative capacity below two megawatts for experimental systems housed in containerized modules placed on concrete slabs within existing research facilities at the solar complex. This limit is part of the preparatory dossier, preceding the commercial decision of October 2026.

Initial technical work focused on several electrochemical and thermal storage technologies. Environmental studies cited sodium-ion, zinc-air, and lead-acid batteries among the chemical families and distinct risk profiles. These technologies were among the examples examined during program preparation, with the composition of the first test campaign remaining open. The current consultation specifically concerns battery-based electrical storage systems.

Masen launches an international market for a battery test facility at Noor Ouarzazate, with a projected budget of $3.25 million

The climate of Ouarzazate lends particular interest to these evaluations. Located in an arid zone, ten kilometers northeast of the city, the facility experiences high temperatures and significant seasonal temperature fluctuations. These parameters alter battery behavior, starting with their cooling requirements, thermal response, and storage capacity maintenance. The installations will study these issues through real equipment measurements, in an environment far removed from the laboratories of battery-producing countries.

The program also includes the review of safety conditions specific to each chemical composition. Preliminary studies have cataloged risks of fire, thermal reactions, gaseous emissions, liquid or solid discharges. They have recommended monitoring systems, personnel protection devices, and effluent treatment systems, to establish appropriate control procedures before any large-scale industrial use.

Masen launches an international market for a battery test facility at Noor Ouarzazate, with a projected budget of $3.25 million

The World Bank approved the financing on June 13, 2024, prior to the signing on September 30 of the following year of a $3.95 million donation agreement between Masen and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), manager of the Energy Sector Management Assistance Program (ESMAP). This donation is dedicated to applied research and equipment procurement.

The agreement divided the program into three components: the design and operation of the test facility, the acquisition of experimental equipment, and the dissemination of technical results accompanied by training. The generated data will serve enterprises, electricity network operators, and energy investment institutions. A portion of the lessons learned will be shared with other countries in the international network of World Bank-supported experimental energy storage platforms.

Masen launches an international testbed market at Noor Ouarzazate, with a projected budget of $3.25 million

This network initially gathers projects in Morocco, India, and South Africa. The World Bank intends to compare results obtained under different climates and electricity systems. The tests will allow industry players and future buyers to evaluate technologies still lacking sufficient commercial references on certain markets, and better understand the financial risks associated with their purchase.

In its July 2025 progress report, the World Bank set objectives including the evaluation of three technologies, the conduct of four tests, the training of fifteen personnel, two knowledge-sharing learning sessions. These figures were based on projections. As of June 30, 2025, the institution noted that the platform was still awaiting launch, and the planned tests remained to be initiated.

The new consultation has entered the project into the phase of selecting equipment suppliers. Its timeline set the completion of activities before the funding closure, now announced for October 2027, instead of the April 2027 deadline previously stated in the World Bank’s earlier progress documents.

Masen launches an international market for a battery test facility at Noor Ouarzazate, with a projected budget of $3.25 million

The works will take place on the existing research platform at Noor Ouarzazate, limiting construction to the necessary modifications for installing the equipment. Initial environmental studies had favored the use of existing installations to host the experimental systems, avoiding the construction of a new power plant. The October tender confirmed that the supplier would carry out the essential electrical and civil engineering works required for the test facility’s operation.

The contract is addressed to international battery storage system manufacturers, electrical equipment suppliers, companies specializing in power electronics engineering, and industrial test system integrators. The final market amount and the identity of the winning bidder will be determined by the competitive procedure, open to all battery manufacturers and technologies.