Concentrated Solar Power

Import of sustainable energy from the Sahara

This project will investigate technical and economic feasibility of importing solar energy from a high insolation region, the Sahara, to the EU-region. In addition, the energy flows will be studied, including the losses and the various potential benefits of energy being available where and when it is required. To this end, the project will also consider the best logistic set-up for the transmission/transport and the input of energy to the European electricity network. KEMA is the project coordinator.

Generation Principle
The harnessing method will be Concentrated Solar Power (CSP). The harnessed energy will be stored in a storage-material (e.g. metal-metal oxide cylce) ready for transportation to an energy recovery site connected to the European electricity grid. There, the stored energy can directly be recovered to electricity or thermal energy. The storage-metal will oxidize during the energy recovery process. The metal oxide is re-used at the CSP plant where it is regenerated into metal, producing oxygen as a by-product. The storage metal would be readily transported over large distances and there would be no ‘self discharge’ problems.

Benefits
Besides clear benefits such as no ‘self discharge’ issues, no geographical restrictions and a potentially high availability of supply CSP also has efficiency benefits. Put this all together CSP-energy is a clear and strong contender to harness solar energy.

Duration
January 1, 2009 – December 31, 2009