Siemens Initiates Solar Systems For Power Supply

Siemens, the German electrical-electronic giant, says it has acquired the capacity to deliver cutting-edge projects, including pioneering engineering achievements ranging from intercontinental telegraph links to the Shannon project for the electrification

"Desert power for Europe " is one such visionary projects the company is currently focusing on.

The company's communication head, Olusegiun Afolabi, stated that there is an enormous dormant energy potential in the desert regions on the world's solar belt, adding that the sun is available for power generation for over 4800 hours a year, which is equivalent to more than three times the total annual insolation in Germany . Within 6 hours the earth's desert regions receive more energy from the sun than mankind consumes within a year. An area measuring 300 by 300 square kilometers fitted with parabolic mirrors would be sufficient to meet the world's entire power demand.''

''The Desertec concept describes sustainable power supply for Europe, the Middle East and Northern Africa based on renewable energy sources. The power is to be generated by solar thermal power plants primarily located in northern Africa and by wind farms off the coast of Northern Africa and Northern Europe. Desertec could in the future make a contribution toward a clean power generation mix.''

The Desertec concept, according to the statement, makes provision for the construction of many mid-sized solar power plants with ratings between 50 and 200 mw at twenty sites extending from Morocco to Saudi Arabia at an estimated investment costs totaling EUR400 billion up until 2050 for an infrastructure capable of providing approx. 100 GW - the capacity of one hundred large-capacity power plants (for comparison: current installed capacity in Germany 137 GW) - for export to Europe. The figure for the power plants would be EUR350 billion and EUR50 billion for the requisite transmission lines.

To move the Desertec concept forward toward realisation, an Industrial Initiative (Desertec II) comprising a number of renowned companies has been set up under the leadership of Münchner Rück, which are capable of getting concrete projects off the ground. Siemens was involved in this from a very early stage.

Siemens, according to the statement, is poised to develop CO2-free power generation across continents in the 21st century, just like she developed intercontinental telecommunications in the 19th century.

Akinlabi, stated further that the Siemens together with a number of renowned industrial companies, have a commitment in the Desertec Industrial Initiative (Desertec II). The objective of this initiative is to develop over the mid-term a technical and economic concept for solar power from Africa.

Akinlabi noted that the technology for implementation of the desertec concept is available with Siemens. "Solar thermal power plants have a track record spanning 20 years and will experience a boom that is currently still difficult to assess. Low-loss, long-distance transmission of large quantities of power is also technically feasible, and is already being successfully implemented in China and India", Akinlabi said.

"Siemens is a world leader in offshore wind farms and steam turbines for solar-thermal power plants. Through its equity stake in the Italian company Archimede Solar Energy, Siemens can also offer solar receivers and thus a further key component for the construction of solar power plants. By combining these two technologies we will enhance the efficiency of these plants and further reduce solar power production costs" Akinlabi said.

Siemens also noted that among the renewable alternatives, wind power is by far the most important energy source. The share of renewable used for generating power worldwide, excluding hydro power, will grow from 3 percent in 2008 to 14 per cent in 2030. Roughly 49 per cent of this total will be contributed to wind power followed by solar (28 per cent), biomass (19 per cent) and geothermal (3 per cent).

Also, among the renewable alternatives, solar energy is expected to show the highest growth rate of over 28 %. The development of solar energy will continue to be strongly driven by worldwide subsidies which have already led to substantial cost reductions. Siemens also noted that wind power is by far the most important energy source being used in a growing number of countries. China , India and the U.S. are strong growth markets. Installed onshore wind farm capacity will grow from 94 in 2007 to 660 gigawatts (GW) in 2030. At the same time offshore installed capacity worldwide will increase from 1 to 85 GW.