E.ON seeks solar proposals

The power and gas group is calling for proposals from universities and scientific organisations worldwide that aim to exploit concentrating solar power (CSP) to harness the vast renewable-energy resources of the sun’s rays that are available in some regions of the world.

E.ON is inviting grant applications to develop the improved heat-storage technologies that are critical to CSP.

It will also consider highly original projects that facilitate better or alternative ways for CSP to store thermal energy captured from the sun, or are innovative in expanding the future role of CSP.

This call is the third put forward under E.ON’s International Research Initiative (IRI), which is a 10-year programme backed by a total of €60m (£54m) in grant awards.

E.ON’s choice of CSP as a research topic comes from the belief that it will play a major role in future renewable electricity generation.

The research envisages solar-thermal power stations in which CSP collects the sun’s rays to heat a fluid or solid material, which provides energy for steam generators to produce electricity.