Giant Desertec Solar Project Boosted by Medgrid Alliance

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Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland) -- Two of the world's most ambitious energy projects have joined forces to export solar power from North Africa to Europe.

The German-led Desertec Industry Initiative (Dii) (Munich, Germany) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the French Medgrid consortium to cooperate on installing solar panels across North African deserts to generate power for Europe, North Africa and parts of the Middle East. The groups have agreed to the exchange of information, updates on progress, joint evaluation of potential synergies and to make joint efforts within the European Union (E.U.) and Middle-East and North Africa (MENA) to obtain a more favourable regulatory framework for renewable energy markets.

The Desertec consortium of about 20 companies, including RWE AG (OTC:RWEOY) (Essen, Germany), Siemens AG (NYSE:SI) (Munich, Germany) and Deutsche Bank (Frankfurt, Germany), is behind a hugely ambitious €400 billion ($550 billion) project to build solar plants stretching across 6,000 square kilometres of the North African desert. The rollout is planned for the coming decades and will eventually supply up to 15% of all of Europe's electricity needs by 2050.

MedGrid, formed in Paris at the end of last year by companies including Electricite de France S.A. (EPA:EDF) (EDF) (Paris, France) and Areva SA (EPA:CEI) (Paris, France), aims to develop new high capacity electricity links that would link the southern, eastern and northern shores of the Mediterranean for the transportation of electricity generated primarily from renewable resources.

The MoU between Desertec and Medgrid has been praised by the European Commission (E.C.).

"By joining efforts and coordinating their approaches, the two initiatives take a truly European dimension," said E.C. Energy Commissioner, Günther Oettinger. "There is now a concrete perspective of solar and wind energy being produced for the joint benefit of European and Northern African and Middle Eastern citizens, as well for the benefit of both markets."

The first phase of the Desertec project will kick off in 2012 with the construction of a 150-megawatt (MW) plant on a 12-square-kilometre site in the Moroccan desert. This will form part of a larger 500 MW facility which is expected to cost up to €2 billion ($2.8 billion). The 150 MW project is expected to be completed by 2014, with the other 350 MW coming online by 2016. For additional information see November 11, 2011, article - Morocco to Begin Construction of Mega Desertec Solar Project .

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