How Africa's desert sun can bring Europe power

A £5bn solar power plan, backed by a Jordanian prince, could provide
the EU with a sixth of its electricity needs and cut carbon emissions

Robin McKie, science editor
The Observer (extract)
Sunday December 2 2007

"Europe is considering plans to spend more than £5bn on a string of
giant solar power stations along the Mediterranean desert shores of
northern Africa and the Middle East.

More than a hundred of the generators, each fitted with thousands of
huge mirrors, would generate electricity to be transmitted by undersea
cable to Europe and then distributed across the continent to European
Union member nations, including Britain.

Billions of watts of power could be generated this way, enough to
provide Europe with a sixth of its electricity needs and to allow it
to make significant cuts in its carbon emissions. At the same time,
the stations would be used as desalination plants to provide desert
countries with desperately needed supplies of fresh water.
Last week Prince Hassan bin Talal of Jordan presented details of the
scheme - named Desertec - to the European Parliament. 'Countries with
deserts, countries with high energy demand, and countries with
technology competence must co-operate,' he told MEPs.

The project has been developed by the Trans-Mediterranean Renewable
Energy Corporation and is supported by engineers and politicians in
Europe as well as Morocco, Algeria, Libya, Jordan and other nations in
the Middle East and Africa.

Europe would provide initial funds for developing the solar technology
that will be needed to run plants as well as money for constructing
prototype stations. After that, banks and financial institutions, as
well as national governments, would take over the construction
programme, which could cost more than £200bn over the next 30 years."

full article:-
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2007/dec/02/renewableenergy.solarpower


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