Morocco - UK Power Project:
At a time when the energy transition is a global priority, the development of submarine cables to transport energy, produced in areas with high renewable energy potential, around the world represents a vital solution to meet the increasing demand for reliable and affordable energy, reduce our carbon footprint and achieve the climate goals set by the 2015 Paris Agreement.
To combat climate change, it is necessary to replace the energy created by fossil fuels with new, greener energy sources now.
With this in mind, Xlinks launched its first project in 2019, the Morocco-UK Energy Project (PEMR) with the aim of creating an exclusive and affordable supply of renewable energy for the UK. The PEMR will thus enable the UK to reduce its dependence on fossil fuels and help it meet its commitments to stop using carbon fuels by 2035. The PEMR exists to help bridge this gap.
Once operational, the project will generate up to 11.5 gigawatts (GW) of zero-carbon electricity from solar intensity twice that of the UK and strong, reliable trade winds, combined with battery storage. The PEMR will provide 3.6 GW of affordable and reliable electricity for more than 19 hours a day, via a 4,000 km high-voltage direct current (HVDC) submarine cable, buried in the seabed.
The project will supply 8% of the UK’s electricity needs (equivalent to 7 million homes) with exclusive, reliable and clean energy by the early 2030s.
The cable route will run along the coasts of Morocco, Portugal, Spain and France before being directly connected to the British national grid. Crossing French territorial waters and the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) over a total length of approximately 787 km, the PEMR would not involve landing in France.
Overall construction will begin in 2027 with route preparation in 2028 and cable installation in France expected in 2029.
Where will the offshore cables go?
The route in France is shown by the solid red line in the image above. The majority of the cable route in France waters is within the EEZ with 155km in Territorial Waters off the coast of Nouvelle Aquitaine. The cables are closest to the France coast near Capbreton (8km offshore). The average water depth along the cable route in France is approximately 130m with a minimum depth of approximately 50m.
The subsea cables have a diameter of 18cm (similar to a dinner side plate). They will be installed for the majority of the cable route as two bundled pairs. Each pair of cables will be laid using trenching machines and then buried up to 1.5m deep and covered with natural sediment in order to protect the cables. The width of the temporary trench will be approximately 1m.
What are the benefits for France?
We believe there are strong environmental and economic benefits to France. France aims to be net-zero by 2050 and it is hoped that the Project can indirectly contribute to this target by supporting UK’s provision of renewable power to France via the existing and future electricity interconnection between the two countries. We estimate the project could contribute to a 0.8% reduction in annual energy-related carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in France.
Modelling by AFRY* suggests that the Project will, in its first year of operation, lead to a 5.9% reduction in wholesale electricity prices in France. The total benefit of the Project to French consumers from the early 2030s to 2055 is estimated to be approximately €11.7bn.
We expect that the France maritime industry will benefit during the construction phase as local ports are used by the installation vessels and local support vessels have the opportunity to support the work for example; guarding the cables once they have been laid and awaiting protection. The Project is also in discussion with a number of private companies with both a direct and indirect association with France as part of the ongoing competitive procurement activities for the main construction contracts.
*AFRY research
What has happened so far in France and what happens next?
In December 2024, the Project successfully completed a cable route survey using geophysical (acoustic), geotechnical and environmental instrumentation. The Project is currently analysing this information in order to confirm the technical designs for cable installation and also inform the environmental impact assessment (EIA) and permitting.
Consultation
The Project is the subject of an upstream consultation decided by the National Commission of Public Debate (CNDP) in plenary session on October 2, 2024.
To ensure the right to information and public participation, three guarantors have been designated by the CNDP. You can contact them by e-mail at any time during the consultation process:
Walter Acchiardi: [email protected]
Jean-Yves Albert: [email protected]
Bernard Pacory : [email protected]
Further information is available on the CNDP website here: https://www.debatpublic.fr/liaison-electrique-sous-marine-entre-le-maroc-et-le-royaume-uni-pemr-6701 and will be included on this page.
How to find out more and have your say.
To find out more about the Morocco-UK Energy Project, Xlinks will be hosting a series of public meetings and workshops from Monday 24 March to Tuesday 10 June 2025 – which are outlined below .
You can also participate by sending your comments and questions via the form at the bottom of the page or with the T-cards (pre-stamped cards) available from the town halls of coastal towns (Bayonne ; Capbreton ; Lège Cap Ferret ; Lacanau ; Bordeaux ; La Rochelle ; Les Sables d’Olonne ; Saint Nazaire ; Lorient ; Brest ; Belle Ile en Mer – Le Palais ; L’Ile d’Yeu ; Houat ; Saint Pierre d’Oléron ; St Martin de Ré.)
Click here to download the consultation report.
Click here to download the summary of the consultation report.
Public meetings
There are public meetings being organised in Bayonne, La Rochelle, Lorient and online. To take part in these meetings, please register in advance (up to 48 hours before the meeting) via the registration links below (a maximum capacity of 80 to 100 people is planned for the various in person events).
Public meeting n°1 : Opening of the consultation process.
Tuesday, 25 March
18.00 – 20.00
Registration details to follow
The aim of this first public meeting is to launch the consultation process close to the Spain border. The focus of this meeting will be put on its international dimension and environmental issues. There will be a general presentation on the project and the consultation process, followed by a question/answer time with the room.
Public Meeting n°2 : Maritime activities, including renewable maritime energies: what coexistence with the MUPP?
Tuesday 8 April
18.00 – 20.00
La Rochelle
Registration details to follow
The aim of this second public meeting is to present the project as a whole and to look more specifically at the issues surrounding the occupation of the seabed by various activities, including marine renewable energies and their connection.
Public meeting n°3 : MUPP and others offshore activities, such as fishing: what coexistence? PEMR and economic activities including fishing: what interactions?
Tuesday, 22 April
18.00 – 20.00
Lorient
Registration details to follow
This final face-to-face public meeting will look at the project as a whole, before focusing more specifically on the link between the project and fishing issues, during and after the construction phase.
Public Meeting n°4 : End of the consultation process.
Wednesday, 28 May
18.00 – 20.00
Online
Registration details to follow
The aim of this final public meeting is to draw up an initial assessment of the consultation process and to address any remaining questions and comments from the public. The follow-up to the consultation process will also be presented.
Workshops
Three workshops are being organised to work on the issue of crossing the Capbreton Abyss. To take part, register in advance (up to ten days before the workshop) via the registration links below (as capacity is limited, your registration can be confirmed up to one week before the workshop date).
Workshop n°1 : The challenges of crossing the Capbreton Abyss: presentation and work on possible scenarios.
Thursday, 24 April
17.00 – 19.30
Capbreton/Bayonne (to be confirmed)
Registration details to follow
The aim of this first workshop is to introduce this specific participation process and its goal. Xlinks will present scenarios of the crossing of the Capbreton abyss. Following this time of information/introduction, participants will be invited to react and share their knowledge on the subject. At the end, people can think of other options and share them with the room. Xlinks will be invited to react to these potential new options: why it could or couldn’t be an option?
Workshop n°2 : The challenges of crossing the Capbreton Gouf: a more in-depth analysis of the scenarios.
Tuesday, 6 May
17.00 – 19.30
Capbreton/Bayonne (to be confirmed)
Registration details to follow
The aim of this second workshop is to examine in greater detail each of the scenarios envisaged by the project promoter and the alternative scenarios considered by the participants.
Workshop n°3 : The challenges of crossing the Capbreton Gouf: what reduction and compensation measures for which scenarios?
Tuesday, 20 May
17.00 – 19.30
Capbreton/Bayonne (to be confirmed)
Registration details to follow
This third and final workshop will end the work on the challenges of the crossing of the Capbreton Gouf: what issues, what scenarios and what reduction or compensation measures are envisaged for which options? The aim of this last workshop is to enable participants to identify the conditions under which the different scenarios can be favored over one another.
Frequently Asked Questions
The Project is being developed by Xlinks 1 Limited, a UK company. So far, the Project has attracted c.£100m in development funding from world-class investors like TAQA, Total Energies, Octopus, GE Vernova and AFC, each of whom has done extensive due diligence.
The solar and wind farms will be located in the Province of Tan-Tan in the south of Morocco.
Environmental impacts are considered to be very low due to the small footprint of cable installation and, where possible, the avoidance of sensitive habitats.
The subsea cables have an 18cm diameter (similar to a side plate). The cables consist of a metallic core (Aluminium or Copper) surrounded by cross linked polyethylene (XLPE) insulation and a then a number of sealing and armouring layers. All sections of the cable are solid and there is no risk of the cables creating a pollution risk. They will be installed for the majority of the cable route as two bundled pairs. Each pair of cables will be laid and then buried in order to protect the cables. It is anticipated that for the majority of the route the cables will be buried up to 1.5m into the seabed using trenching machines and covered by natural sediments. The width of the temporary trench will be approximately 1m. This is similar to the process used in the laying of the fibre optic cables that already crisscross the globe to provide communications connectivity. As the cables are buried, they do not interfere with the seabed ecosystem once in place. It is also important to note, that once the cables have been installed, fishing and other non-intrusive marine activities can take place as normal above the cables.
The Project will engage with experts within each of the countries along the offshore cable route to ensure that a robust Environmental Impact Assessment is performed so that the impacts of the cables can be understood and the relevant mitigation measures developed.
The cable will travel on land from the generation site in the Guelmim-Oued Noun region of Morocco and enter the sea northwest of the city of Tan-Tan. It will then follow the Moroccan coastline up the Strait of Gibraltar and make its way up the coast of Portugal, Spain and France before going around The Isles of Scilly. The cable will then cross through UK territorial waters before landing in Devon, west of Bideford.
The connection agreement with National Grid allows the Morocco – UK Power Project to start transmitting through the first 1.8GW system from early 2030s.
The Gouf de Capbreton is an underwater canyon that cuts into the continental shelf south of the Bay of Biscay. This geological structure is linked to the separation of two tectonic plates in the Bay of Biscay.
The canyon extends for 270 km to the west through a series of meanders and canyons that are deeper and deeper until it reaches the abyssal plain off the coast of Santander, with a depth of 3,500 m and a width of 15 km.
The Project plans to install cables through the Gouf de Capbreton in France territorial waters, about 8 km from the town of Capbreton. The method for installing the cables through the canyon is currently being engineered. The Project will not install cables onshore in France at any point along the route.
The Morocco – UK Energy Project aligns with the Moroccan state’s strategy to accelerate the development of a new clean energy industry, to deliver both its domestic energy agenda, and to unlock export value from its substantial renewable energy resources.
The Project will bring substantial economic benefits to Morocco, unlock revenue from the site lease for the Moroccan government, create thousands of high-quality direct and indirect jobs during the construction phase and drive substantial industrial development through local procurement for different renewable energy technologies.
In addition, Xlinks has adopted an inclusive approach toward the local population and will ensure, thanks to local socio-economic development programs, that local populations will benefit from the Project from day one of operation and over the longer term.
Further information.
If you have further questions and would like more information, please contact us by completing this form.
Your contribution will be considered from the start of the consultation process 24 March to the end on the 10 June, 2025.