Solar power with grid backup in Algeria

By the end of 2023, Algeria had 437 MW of solar generation capacity, according to the national Commission for Renewable Energies and Energy Efficiency (CEREFE). The country has an average of 3,000 hours of sunshine per year and global horizontal irradiation of almost 1,700 kWh/m²/year in the north and 2,263 kWh/m²/year in the south.

Alongside Zergoun, the manufacturer Lagua Solaire has 200 MW of annual capacity for solar panel production in Algeria. The production plant of Algerian telecommunications and renewable energy company Milltech has a facility in Mila, in the east of the country, with a production capacity of 100 MW for M3-based modules. Manufacturing hub

The state-owned China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC) began building a 300 MW solar power plant in Algeria's Oued Province in March 2024 as part of the Solar 1,000 MW program. The project is slated for completion by late 2025 or early 2026.

Among them, the 233-megawatt photovoltaic project completed in 2016 was Algeria's first new energy project and also the first large-scale grid-connected photovoltaic power station project in Africa. It was honored with the Luban Prize for Overseas Projects in 2018-2019.

The two photovoltaic projects have a capacity of 220 megawatts and 150 megawatts, respectively, and will be constructed by POWERCHINA using an EPC model. The two projects are parts of the 15 gigawatts photovoltaic network planned and constructed for Algeria by 2035.

The country has an average of 3,000 hours of sunshine per year and global horizontal irradiation of almost 1,700 kWh/m²/year in the north and 2,263 kWh/m²/year in the south. Nevertheless, nearly 100% electrified Algeria generates 99% of its energy from domestic gas.