page_title: Desertec
section_title: DLR studies
hierarchical_section_title: Desertec / Concept details / Studies about DESERTEC / DLR studies
caption_attribution_description: English: Map of yearly sunshine hours in the world Italiano: Carta dell'eliofania annua nel mondo &#160;&#160; &lt; 1200 h &#160;&#160; 1200-1600 h &#160;&#160; 1600-2000 h &#160;&#160; 2000-2400 h &#160;&#160; 2400-3000 h &#160;&#160; 3000-3600 h &#160;&#160; 3600-4000 h &#160;&#160; &gt; 4000 h
context_page_description: DESERTEC was a large-scale project supported by a foundation of the same name and the consortium Dii created in Germany as a limited liability company. The project aimed at creating a global renewable energy plan based on the concept of harnessing sustainable power from sites where renewable sources of energy are more abundant and transferring it through high-voltage direct current transmission to consumption centers. All kinds of renewable energy sources are envisioned, but the sun-rich deserts of the world play a special role.
  There are some parallels between Desertec and the Atlantropa project plan in the 1920s. Atlantropa aimed to integrate Europe and Northern Africa and its electricity grid based on a giant hydro power station at Gibraltar. The industry platform Dii is continuing to pave the way for renewables and grid integration on a very pragmatic basis. As of 2019 the project is described as largely "stalled" and "failed".
context_section_description: The DESERTEC Concept was developed by an international network of politicians, academics and economists, called TREC. The research institutes for renewable sources of the governments of Morocco (CDER), Algeria (NEAL), Libya (CSES), Egypt (NREA), Jordan (NERC) and Yemen (Universities of Sana'a and Aden) as well as the German Aerospace Center (DLR) made significant contributions towards the development of the DESERTEC Concept. The basic studies relating to DESERTEC were led by DLR scientist Dr. Franz Trieb working for the Institute for Technical Thermodynamics at the DLR. The three studies were funded by the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, and Nuclear Safety (BMU). The studies, conducted between 2004 and 2007, evaluated the following as shown in the table below;
  The studies concluded that the extremely high solar radiation in the deserts of North Africa and the Middle East outweighs the 10–15% transmission losses between the desert regions and Europe. This means that solar thermal power plants in the desert regions are more economical than the same kinds of plants in southern Europe. The German Aerospace Center has calculated that if solar thermal power plants were to be constructed in large numbers in the coming years, the estimated cost of electricity would come down from 0.09–0.22 euro/kWh to about 0.04–0.05 euro/kWh.
  The Sahara Desert was chosen as an ideal location for solar farms as it is exposed to bright sunshine nearly all the time, roughly between 80% and 97% of the daylight hours in the best cases. This is the sunniest year-round area on the planet. In the world's largest hot desert, there is an extremely vast area, covering almost the whole desert, that receives more than 3,600 h of yearly sunshine. There is also a very large area in excess of 4,000 h of sunshine annually. The highest solar radiation received on the planet is in the Sahara Desert, under the Tropic of Cancer. This results from a general, strong lack of cloud cover year-round and a geographical position under the tropics.
  The annual average insolation, which represents the total amount of solar radiation energy received on a given area and on a giver period, is about 2,500 kWh/(m² year) over the region and this number can soar up to almost 3,000 kWh/(m² year) in the best cases. The weather features of the Sahara Desert, especially the insolation, have a pronounced nature. The annual electricity production reaches 1,300,000 TWh at maximum in this sun-drenched area if the whole desert is covered in solar panels.
  The desert is also extremely vast covering about some 9,000,000 km² (3,474,920 sq mi), being almost as large as China or the United States and is sparsely populated, making it possible to set up large solar farms without a negative impact on inhabitants of the region, too. Lastly, sand deserts can provide silicon, a raw material that is essential in the production of solar panels.
  The great African desert is relatively cloud-free all year long but it's important to note the harsh, desert climate also has some negative features such as extreme heat and sometimes dust or sand-laden winds which frequently blow over the desert and can even result in severe duststorms or sandstorms. Both phenomenons reduce the solar electricity productivity and the efficiency of the solar panels.
caption: Annual sunshine hours map of the world      < 1200 h   1200-1600 h   1600-2000 h   2000-2400 h   2400-3000 h   3000-3600 h   3600-4000 h   > 4000 h
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