Allen & Overy has advised longstanding client TAQA and Jorf Lasfar Energy Company 5&6 on the project financing for the 700MW expansion of the Jorf Lasfar power plant in Morocco.
Jorf Lasfar is the largest coal-fired power complex in the MENA region and the first independent power producer (IPP) in Morocco. Jorf Lasfar is also the largest power plant in Morocco and already supplies 40% of the country’s electricity output.
The expansion in the form of two additional units is a key infrastructure project for Morocco’s energy strategy intended to meet the needs of ONEE (Office National de l’Electricité & de l’Eau Potable) and increase the country’s installed electricity generation capacity. The 700 MW expansion will bring Jorf Lasfar’s gross capacity to 2056 MW.
Allen & Overy partner François Duquette who led the transaction from the firm’s Casablanca office, commented:
“This is the biggest transaction in the energy sector in Morocco since 1997. It has set a new standard for large scale financings in the region“.
In a double first for the Moroccan market, the expansion used Japanese and Korean ECAs in addition to a combination of Moroccan and European banks. It is the largest international project financing in Morocco in over a decade.
