Could African solar energy provide European electricity?

A German consortium, Desertec, is contemplating harnessing the sun’s energy in the North African desert to provide up to 15% of Europe’s electricity with little or no carbon dioxide emissions.

Insurance company Munich Re, wants companies like Siemens, Deutsche Bank, E.On and others to become involved. The idea is to establish solar farms in Tunisia and then send electricity to Europe.

“Over 90% of the world’s population could be supplied with clean power from deserts by using technologies that are available today,” said a Red Paper available on the Desertec Foundation web site, which is www.desertec.org.

The idea for solar power on a grand sale is nothing new, but cheap oil prices have discouraged its development previously. Germany’s Environment Ministry commissioned Hans Muller-Steinhagen to investigate the feasibility of Desertec, which is estimated to cost $555 billion.

Muller-Steinhagen says the technology already is available, and he tentatively believes such a project might be possible. He says no other energy source can achieve the massive energy density as sunshine.