Mission 2012 – Flight to Ouarzazate – 2nd Attempt – B. Piccard, A. Borschberg and M.Bakkoury (President of MASEN) © Solar Impulse | Jean Revillard

After completing its historic 2,500-kilometer intercontinental flight to Morocco earlier this month, the Swiss solar-powered plane, Solar Impulse, lifted off from Morocco's capital Rabat last week on the second attempt at its most challenging flight yet – to the Sahara desert and Ouarzazate, where Morocco is building the world’s largest solar-thermal plant to harness renewable power from the Sahara sun for North Africa and Europe.

The solar plane, powered by 12,000 solar cells in its 207-ft wing-span and not a drop of fossil fuel, touched down in Morocco on June 5 after flying from Switzerland via Madrid. After landing, the Solar Impulse team joined events highlighting renewable energy technologies, under the patronage of King Mohammed VI and at the invitation of the Moroccan Agency for Solar Energy, MASEN, which oversees Morocco’s solar energy plans.

MASEN President Mustapha Bakkoury welcomed Solar Impulse pilot Bertrand Piccard at Rabat's airport, calling the flight important for raising awareness about solar energy’s potential to reduce global dependence on oil, and saying, “we share a common message with Solar Impulse.” He said Morocco will be producing solar energy by 2014, when Solar Impulse plans to fly a round-the-world tour.

The solar flight to Morocco coincides with construction launch of a World Bank-financed solar thermal project in Ouarzazate – the first of five sites – that will produce 2,000 megawatts of renewable energy from the Sahara sun and create many jobs in the area. When it reaches Ouarzazate, Solar Impulse plans to fly over the site and land nearby to show its support for the innovative solar power project.