European Copper Institute (ECI) contributes to political debate, directly and through stakeholder platforms, sharing its expertise of copper-based products and technical building services and their contribution to the Commission goal of a carbon-neutral building stock. ECI has a considerable knowledge base and multidisciplinary expertise in technology, chemical policy and life cycle relating to copper and its applications. It also has established outreach channels aimed at supporting its advocacy towards the EU institutions.
Solarthermalworld.org was initiated by ECI in 2008 with the aim of providing stakeholders from research, public and private sector all around the globe with first-class information about solar heating and cooling to stimulate market growth. The ECI has supported the hosting of the website as well as the content gathering continuously since 2008.
Please see below our most recent articles:
Two concentrating solar industrial heat plants in operation in Barcelona
With the commissioning of two solar steam and cooling demonstration plants for industrial applications in May, the EU project Hycool has achieved major milestones. The photo shows the 800 m2 linear Fresnel collector field next to a chemical facility of the company Givaudan, which creates flavours and fragrances (see photo) …
“The solar thermal sector is able to scale up production rapidly”
“We want multi-megawatt solar heat plants to become a no-brainer for clients in industry and the energy sector”, states Guglielmo Cioni, Vice President of Business Development at TVP Solar. The Swiss company manufactures special high-vacuum flat panels that offer good yields, even on colder days of the year. Cioni wants …
New Glasspoint announces first 1.5 GW parabolic trough field
Glasspoint is back. Two years after its liquidation the company has been restarted by founder and long-term former CEO Rod MacGregor. Together with the institutional investor Blackrock, MacGregor has restarted the team in New York and London with almost 50 employees and is able to use all patents and rights …
Controversial view of Germany’s renewable industrial heat subsidy scheme
Demand for subsidised renewable industrial heat in Germany has been growing significantly. The German subsidy scheme Energy Efficiency in Industry – Section 2 spent EUR 128 million in 2021, which was two and a half times more than the previous year’s EUR 50 million. In both years demand was dominated …
Greek factories: a new collector every 72 seconds
The Greek solar thermal industry is growing impressively and so are its factories. The annually produced collector area doubled from 540,000 m2 in 2014 to 1.19 million m2 in 2021 according to the Greek solar thermal industry association EBHE. While domestic sales increased by 33 % in the period under …
From LECs to TECs – citizen energy in focus
In recent years, the term Local Energy Communities has gained wider currency. And what it describes has given rise to the new phenomenon of the ‘prosumer’, who not only consumes but also produces energy. The definition of an Local Energy Community (LEC) varies from source to source. The shortest may …
What will be the demands of REPowerEU on solar heat and heat pumps?
The Russian invasion of Ukraine triggered the publication of the REPowerEU plan, which the European Commission introduced on 18 May. Accelerated deployment of renewable energies and energy efficiency measures should rapidly reduce dependency on Russian fossil fuels and speed up the green transition. The climate goals were tightened again and …
EU Solar Energy Strategy should balance out heat and power
The European Commission plans to launch its EU Solar Energy Strategy in June 2022. According to the official announcement this strategy will “take the form of a Commission communication“, aiming to ensure that solar energy both for power generation and heat production “achieves its full potential in helping to meet …
Emission-free heat supply for new building area in Austria
For an emission-free energy supply for new and existing buildings on industrial wasteland in Reutte, Tyrol, Austria, the project developers are using PVT collectors. The Zero Emission Building Design concept of the Austrian company Simona Alexe – greenixcloud convinced the investors. They want to build a new commercial, industrial and …
The big names in Spain’s picking up industrial solar heat market
The latest call for solar heat projects in service and industry in Spain created quite intensive sales activities for technology providers. The Thermal Energy Production scheme awarded funding to 51 solar thermal systems totalling 61 MW. A handful of Spanish companies will provide the technology and installation services for most …
EU Minimum Energy Performance Standards: Powerful tool or threat?
The draft of the EU Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) from mid-December 2021 includes a number of powerful amendments (see pdfs at the end of the article). Minimum Energy Performance Standards (MEPS) for existing buildings and a definition of Zero Emission Buildings (ZEB) are new key elements. Reporting has …
Economic tailwind for large flat plate collector producers globally
Consolidation among the global solar thermal industry continued in 2021. The 20 largest flat plate collector manufacturers listed in the ranking managed to increase production by, on average, 15 % last year. This is significantly higher than in the previous year, with 9 %. The reasons for the growth are …
