Europe to buy Africa’s sun

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History books may have to reserve space for yet another example that with enough money and brainpower Europeans can have anything - even Africa’s sun.

Plans are being developed, under a project named Desertec, to place solar thermal plants in the Sahara desert in North Africa. Then, via high voltage direct current transmission, the resulting power is to be transported approximately 2000km and distributed throughout Europe.“Within 6 hours, deserts receive more energy from the sun than humankind consumes within a year.” This statement, credited to Dr. Gerhard Knies, is like a slogan for optimistic Europeans who believe they can benefit from another of Africa’s natural resources—solar power.