Future Markets

On a purely mathematical basis, solar thermal power plants covering just 1% of the surface area of the Sahara would suffice to cover global electricity requirements (DLR). According to a study of the Trans-Mediterranean Renewable Energy Cooperation (TREC), 80% of the power consumed in the EUMENA (Europe, Middle East, North Africa) region could be covered by renewables in 2050. The core elements of this scenario are solar thermal power plants in North Africa and the Middle East. The power generated here would be fed into a Trans-Mediterranean power grid that supplies the entire EUMENA region. A conservative forecast by the Emerging Energy Research (EER) Institute estimates the worldwide power production in such solar power plants will increase from 354 MW in late 2006 to 1,865 MW in 2020.

In hot regions such as the Middle East, up to 80% of the power required is used for the cooling and the climatization of buildings. Today this power is generated in fossil-fuelled power plants and then converted to cooling energy. The overall efficiency of such cooling energy is low, and the resultant CO2 emissions are consequently high. Plants for direct conversion of solar energy to cooling energy therefore present a sensible economic and ecological alternative.

In countries with abundant sunshine it is possible to generate process heat for industrial processes using solar power. This enables developing and threshold countries to develop manufacturing industries in an environmentally friendly manner. Many countries with high levels of heat and sunshine lack drinking water, and this can only be compensated for in the long term by seawater desalination plants. These require a great deal of energy. Plants powered by solar process heat permit cost-effective and environmentally friendly desalination of seawater.