The DESERTEC Concept was developed by a network of politicians, scientists and economists from around the Mediterranean, from which arose the DESERTEC Foundation.
Choosing the best locations offers the greatest benefits in fighting global warming

DESERTEC demonstrates a way to provide climate protection, energy security and development by generating sustainable power from the sites where renewable sources of energy are at their most abundant. These sites can be used thanks to High-Voltage Direct Current transmission. In contrast to conventional AC transmission, HVDC can carry electricity generated from renewables over long distances with losses of just 3 percent per 1,000 kilometers.

Energy is available in abundance and we have the technology to use it

All kinds of renewables will be used in the DESERTEC Concept, but the sun-rich deserts of the world play a special role: within six hours, deserts receive more energy from the sun than humankind consumes within a year. Thanks to heat storage tanks, concentrating solar-thermal power plants in deserts can supply electricity on demand day and night. This makes them an ideal complement to fluctuating energy sources such as wind and photovoltaic power and allows a higher percentage of these variable energy sources to be used in the future electricity mix.

DESERTEC is applicable across the world

As 90 percent of the world’s population lives within 3,000 km of deserts, DESERTEC can be realized not only in Europe, the Middle East and North Africa (EU-MENA), but also in Sub-Saharan Africa, Southern Africa, the Americas, Australia, India and in the whole of East Asia where suitable deserts are within reach of the centers of demand.

DESERTEC combines climate protection and energy security with development and security policy
DESERTEC is a comprehensive solution that not only aims to cover our increasing energy needs, but also to reduce carbon emissions before global warming gets out of control. Alongside climate protection and ensuring the energy supply, it also has many benefits in terms of development and security. The scientific basis of the DESERTEC Concept is described here.

Further information:

• Prominent supporters of DESERTEC
• Answers to frequently asked questions (FAQ)

The volcanoes of Iceland could soon be pumping low-carbon electricity into the UK under government-backed plans for thousands of miles of high-voltage cables across the ocean floor.

The energy minister, Charles Hendry, is to visit Iceland in May to discuss connecting the UK to its abundant geothermal energy. “We are in active discussions with the Icelandic government and they are very keen,” Hendry told the Guardian. To reach Iceland, which sits over a mid-ocean split in the earth’s crust, the cable would have to be 1,000 to 1,500km long and by far the longest in the world.

Hendry has already met the head of Iceland’s national grid about the plan. The web of sea-floor cables – called interconnectors – planned for the next decade would link the UK to a Europe-wide supergrid, which is backed by the prime minister. The supergrid would combine the wind and wave power of northern Europe with solar projects such as Desertec in southern Europe and north Africa to deliver reliable, clean energy to meet climate change targets and reduce dependence on fossil fuel imports.

There are two existing international interconnectors, to France and the Netherlands, but nine more are either in construction, formal planning or undergoing feasibility studies. The next to open, in autumn 2012, will be a link between the Republic of Ireland and Wales, allowing green energy from the windswept Atlantic coast of Ireland to be delivered to British homes.

The UK has been energy independent for virtually its entire history. But with the North Sea’s oil and gas failing and coal banned as too polluting, Hendry is frank about the future: “We will be dependent on imported energy.” The cables “are an absolutely critical part of energy security and for low carbon energy”, he said.

The government’s legally binding targets to reduce carbon emissions is another key driver for the new interconnectors, which if all built could supply a third of the nation’s average electricity demand. Renewable energy, such as the offshore wind power at the heart of the government’s renewable plans, is zero carbon once built but is also intermittent, meaning back-up gas plants or energy storage are needed. A 900km interconnector to Norway, due to open by 2019, would enable excess wind energy to pump water into storage lakes above the fjords. Then, when the electricity is needed, floodgates are opened and the water flows back down through turbines. Both the pump storage and the high-voltage direct-current interconnectors lose very little energy.

Another ambitious interconnector would link England to Alderney, where very strong tides could produce 4GW of electricity, and then on to France and the new 1.6GW nuclear power plant being built at Flamanville. Commercial agreements for this were signed in February.

Interconnector cables can be laid very rapidly – at over 30km a day – but remain significant engineering projects, with each kilometre containing 800 tonnes of copper. The most time-consuming aspect is settling international agreements and preparing landing sites and pylons to handle and distribute a large amount of electricity. “It’s like taking a large nuclear power station onshore,” said Hendry.

He argued that a web of high-voltage cables ending the energy isolation of the British Isles will help keep household energy bills down, by allowing access to the cheapest energy at any particular time.

Tony Glover, at energy grid trade body the Energy Networks Association, said: “For consumers the ability to link electricity supplies from the rest of Europe is good for competition and will generally help to keep prices competitive.” The interconnectors can be built commercially with operators paying for the investment by taking a cut on the electricity transferred.

As well as consumer energy bills, Hendry also argued that interconnectors will help reduce the cost of the intermittency of renewable energy. “Interconnectors are an incredibly effective way to counter the argument that you need to back up each gigawatt of wind with a gigawatt of gas – they quite clearly show you do not,” he said.

Interconnectors require large investments. The Britain-Netherland interconnector, which opened in 2011 and was the first international link in 25 years, cost £500m. But Greenpeace’s Doug Parr said: “Interconnectors are the cheapest way of backing up wind, because you avoid the greater capital cost of building power stations. We will of course be buying power in when the wind is not blowing, but the interconnectors mean we can sell our wind power when it does, and we have the best wind resource in Europe.”

However, Simon Less at the thinktank Policy Exchange, urged caution in relying on interconnectors for back-up: “Major new interconnection in north western Europe might not offset much of the need for backup plantbecause winter high pressure weather patterns can extend low wind conditions right across Europe.”

Norway’s pump storage could counter that fear but there is competition for access to that resource, with Germany also negotiating over an interconnector. “We are keen we should be first,” said Hendry.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2012/apr/11/iceland-volcano-green-power

When 50 AA employees took part in an eco-driving experiment with Auto Express magazine they saved an average 10% on their weekly fuel bills, with the best achieving an incredible 33% saving.

Each drove normally for the first week and then applied our advice (below) to see how much they could save in the second week…

Maintenance

• Servicing: get the car serviced regularly (according to the manufacturer’s schedule) to maintain engine efficiency
• Engine oil: make sure you use the right specification of engine oil (check the handbook)
• Tyres: check tyre pressures regularly and before long journeys; under-inflated tyres create more rolling resistance and so use more fuel (check the handbook and increase pressures for heavier loads as recommended)

Before you go

• Lose weight: extra weight means extra fuel so if there’s anything in the boot you don’t need on the journey take it out
• Streamline: roof-racks and boxes add wind resistance and so increase fuel consumption. If you don’t need it take it off – if you do, pack carefully to reduce drag
• Leave promptly: don’t start the engine until you’re ready to go as idling wastes fuel and the engine warms up more quickly when you’re moving; in the winter, scrape ice rather than leave the car idling to warm up
• Don’t get lost: plan unfamiliar journeys to reduce the risk of getting lost and check the traffic news before you leave
• Combine short trips: cold starts use more fuel so it pays to combine errands such as buying the paper, dropping off the recycling, or collecting the kids
• Consider alternatives: if it’s a short journey (a couple of miles or so) could you walk or cycle rather than taking the car?

En route

• Easy does it: drive smoothly, accelerate gently and read the road ahead to avoid unnecessary braking
• Decelerate smoothly: when you have to slow down or to stop, decelerate smoothly by releasing the accelerator in time, leaving the car in gear
• Rolling: if you can keep the car moving all the time, so much the better; stopping then starting again uses more fuel than rolling
• Change up earlier: don’t labour the engine but try changing up at an engine speed of around 2,000 rpm in a diesel car or around 2,500 rpm in a petrol car. This can make such a difference that all cars in the future are likely to be fitted with a ‘Gear Shift indicator’ light to show the most efficient gear change points.
• Cut down on the air-con: air-conditioning increases fuel consumption at low speeds, but at higher speeds the effects are less noticeable. So if it’s a hot day open the windows around town and save the air conditioning for high speed driving. Don’t leave air-con on all the time but aim to run it at least once a week throughout the year to maintain the system in good condition.
• Turn it off: electrical loads increase fuel consumption, so turn off your heated rear windscreen, demister blowers and headlights, when you don’t need them
• Stick to speed limits: the faster you go the greater the fuel consumption and pollution. Driving at 70mph uses up to 9% more fuel than at 60mph and up to 15% more than at 50mph. Cruising at 80mph can use up to 25% more fuel than at 70mph.
• Don’t be idle: if you do get caught in a queue, avoid wasting fuel – turn the engine off if it looks like you could be waiting for more than three minutes.

Coasting

Although it used to be quite a common practice to save fuel, rolling downhill or approaching a junction with the car out of gear is inadvisable because the driver doesn’t have full control of the vehicle

• You lose the ability to suddenly accelerate out of tricky situations.
• You lose engine braking which risks brake fade on downhill stretches – overheated brakes require harder pedal pressures to stop the vehicle.

With changes in vehicle fuel systems coasting won’t save you fuel these days either.

• Old car with a carburettor – take your foot off the accelerator pedal with the car in gear and fuel is still drawn through into the engine. Fuel savings could be made by coasting out of gear.
• Modern car with electronic engine management – fuel and ignition systems are effectively combined and controlled by one Electronic Control Unit (ECU). Take your foot off the accelerator and the ECU cuts the fuel supply to the injectors anyway so there’s nothing to be gained by coasting.
• Modern diesel engines also have the ability to shut off the fuel when you take your foot off the accelerator.

Why not see how much you can improve on your current average fuel consumption or the ‘official’, manufacturer’s figure by following our advice?

If your car has an onboard computer that records fuel economy (miles per gallon / MPG), take a note of the overall average fuel consumption you’re getting now and then see how much you can improve it by. It should be possible to reset the computer so it starts recording a new average MPG.

With no onboard computer, you’ll first need to find out the official, manufacturer quoted fuel consumption for your car (it’s the official ‘combined’ figure that you want) or establish a baseline average fuel consumption for your current driving style using the steps below.

Check official fuel consumption data here >>

Calculate average fuel consumption over any period by following these steps:

1. Fill the tank and record the mileage
2. Keep a record of any subsequent fuel purchases (you don’t have to completely fill the tank again until you’re ready to work out your mpg.)
3. Ideally go back to the same pump at the same garage you first filled the car and fill the tank again to the same level
4. Now divide the total mileage since the first fill by the total number of litres used and then multiply by 4.546 to get miles per gallon (for example if you’ve covered 1000 miles and used 101 litres of fuel, your average mpg = (1000/101)x4.546 = 45mpg)