Sun-drenched Cyprus imports most of its energy, but this is unnecessary: Cyprus has the highest solar power potential in the European Union. Local engineers and researchers, together with energy experts from Austria and Denmark, have worked to develop the use of this natural resource on the island.
The research promoted the development of Cyprus as a hub for solar power innovation.
The initiative harnessed expertise on all aspects of the solar energy cycle. This includes the solar cells that harvest the sun’s energy, the storage systems required to exploit a variable resource that is unavailable at night, and the smart power grids needed to distribute and manage the flow of electricity.
Early successes in the initiative included a novel method to tackle harmful leakages of electrical power in solar energy systems, which can degrade the long-term performance of solar cells.
The improved cells were designed for use in a new solar park at the University of Cyprus, meeting all the university’s electricity needs.
The efforts of the local and international consortium have also led to many new proposals for future research that build on the initial results.
The work is helping to train the next generation of solar energy researchers and engineers.
They are needed to sustain progress and promote further advances. Specific training sessions have focused on photovoltaic performance and monitoring, degradation, fault detection, power forecasting, grid integration and battery storage. The results of this training were presented at two international conferences.
Additional work with Cypriot industrial partners will continue to strengthen collaboration between industry and academia, benefiting the solar power industry in Cyprus, throughout Europe and beyond.
Outside of Europe, the work has enhanced the links between the EU partners and countries in the Middle East and North Africa, which also have vast solar energy potential.