€400bn super-grid to link Europe and the Middle East

Renewable energy fever has gripped the world, and as such there are plans underway for a €400 billion super-grid to link both Europe and the Middle East, so the continents can benefit from their respective power sources.

Unsurprisingly states in the Middle East have been pursuing solar power projects with Qatar, Bahrain, the UAE and more recently Saudi Arabia, planning projects all around the Gulf.

In Europe, where the sun is less regular, alternative renewable sources are being funded; hydro-electric plants in Scandinavia and the European Alps, onshore and offshore wind farms in the Baltic and North Sea and marine energy and biomass power facilities.

Integrating renewables into a super-grid

Projects such as Desertec, which is being planned by a consortium of European governments, non-governmental organisations and industrial corporations, is the sort of scheme that if the grid goes ahead could power homes on both continents.

Likewise, wind and solar energy plants planned in Bahrain that could potentially produce 5MW a year could see their energy transfer into the grid and distributed to where it is needed. In Egypt, a 150 megawatt solar thermal plant is being constructed which is seen as a template for a series of Middle East and North Africa solar farms to be included in the Desertec project.

When it comes to integrating renewables into a super-grid, there are many issues to deal with. The problem with putting clean energy onto any existing grid, without it being adequately integrated with other forms of power or optimized as a reliable first-tier energy source, would act as 'grid congestion' and has been the main barrier to full utilization. On top of that, potential renewable variability could cause reliability challenges at relatively high levels of distribution.

However a new super or smart grid could change that. In fact, it has the potential and the aim of providing 15 percent or more of Europe and the Middle East's electricity needs with solar power by 2050.

Could Europe be 100% renewable by 2050?

Last month, a study from international consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers stated that Europe and North Africa could achieve "complete independence" from fossil fuels by 2050 and that all the technologies necessary were already in place.

With renewable energy projects sprouting up all over both continents, the chances of getting all our power needs from clean technology is becoming more and more likely and would ease concerns over current energy supplies.

The initiative has given itself three years to set up a policy framework within the European Union and the Middle East and Northern Africa to adequately fund and transport renewable energy from the desert to Europe.

With Desertec spearheading the initiative, and the Middle East investing in other renewable projects such as Masdar City - the world's first carbon neutral city and a proposed $1 billion solar power project in Qatar, the future for Europe's power supplies, and the Middle East's, seems bright.

Relevant articles:

Roadmap 2050: Linking EU power grids | Desertec: Powering Europe from the Sahara | Samso: The energy self-sufficient island

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