The Timahdit and Tarfaya deposits were discovered during the 1960s.[8] These deposits were researched and tested during the 1970s and 1980s.[1] Over 2,200 tons of Timahdit and Tarfaya oil shales were processed in pilot plants in Europe, the United States, Canada, and Japan.[8] Following these tests, in 1984–1986 the Moroccan Office of Hydrocarbons and Mining (ONHYM) developed and tested a shale oil extraction process called T3.