Swiss company Synhelion has announced an investment of 1 billion dollars (or 10 billion dirhams) in Morocco to develop a sustainable synthetic fuel project based on solar energy. Gianluca Ambrosetti, CEO and co-founder of the company, confirmed this ambition during an interview with Asharq Business.
### Advanced Solar Technology
The project is based on the **Sun-to-Liquid** technology, developed by researchers at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich. This innovation uses fields of movable mirrors to concentrate sunlight onto a receiver installed at a height, generating heat exceeding 1,000 °C. This temperature triggers a chemical reaction producing liquid fuels such as gasoline, diesel, and kerosene.
### Morocco, a Strategic Choice
After pilot projects in Germany and Spain, Synhelion has decided to establish its first industrial site in Morocco. Three key factors motivated this choice:
– **Abundant sunshine** ideal for maximizing the efficiency of the process.
– **Availability of raw materials**, essential for the chemical process.
– **A strong industrial fabric**, providing infrastructure suited for advanced technologies.
The announcement was made following a meeting between Gianluca Ambrosetti and Moroccan Minister of Investment, Karim Zidane, on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos.
### An Annual Production of 100,000 Tons
Synhelion plans a production capacity of **100,000 tons of solar fuel per year**, with financing combining bank loans, fundraising, and potential support from Moroccan authorities.
Already supported by European institutions and renowned industrial partners (Lufthansa, Eni, Amag), the company aims to **make its fuel competitive** against fossil energies. The goal is to achieve a production cost of **10 dirhams per liter**, to encourage its adoption, particularly in the aviation sector.
