Finansieringskilde: EUs 6 rammeprogram (FP6)

Budsjett: 161 M€

Under foreligger beskrivelser av 3 aktuelle problemstillinger (utlysning):

Sustainable Energy Systems

Europe’s energy system demonstrates unsustainable patterns of development characterised by growing dependence on imported fossil fuels, rising energy demand and growing CO2 emissions. These unsustainable patterns are exacerbated in key sectors like buildings and transport that are intimately linked with the quality of life of European citizens. The challenge is to alleviate and reverse these adverse trends to achieve a truly sustainable energy system, while preserving the equilibrium of ecosystems and encouraging economic development.
The strategic and policy objectives of this programme of research  into sustainable energy systems include reducing greenhouse gases and pollutant emissions (Kyoto), increasing the security of energy supplies, improving energy efficiency and increasing the use of renewable energy, as well as enhancing the competitiveness of European industry and improving quality of life both within the EU and globally (Johannesburg follow-up).
In addressing these objectives through this Work Programme, a clear differentiation is made between research activities having the potential for exploitation in the short to medium term and those which are expected to have an impact in the medium to longer term. This distinction between the short-to-medium and medium-to-long term time frames is applicable to all indirect research actions in the sustainable energy sector and it is intended that the budgetary appropriations be split equally between the two time frames.

Research activities having an impact in the short and medium term

Community research is one of the main instruments which serve to support the development and implementation of new legislative instruments and other policy measures in the field of energy and to change significantly current unsustainable patterns of development. In the short to medium term, the goal is to pave the way for the introduction of innovative and cost competitive renewable and energy efficiency technologies into the market as quickly as possible through demonstration and other research actions aiming at the market, thus supporting the future development and implementation of the EU Directives on electricity from renewable energy sources and on the energy performance of buildings, as well as the proposed Directives on cogeneration (CHP) and the establishment of regulatory and fiscal measures for the promotion of liquid biofuels.
From a programme implementation perspective the objective is to bring forward and demonstrate the next generation of cost-effective technologies at full scale. The scale of demonstration projects should allow a comprehensive life-cycle assessment under real life conditions. New integrated projects will mobilise the necessary actors and resources to create real life laboratories to investigate the optimal market penetration paths and the most sustainable alternatives. Projects will include socio-economic research into the interfaces between the new energy technologies and their markets, for example innovative policy packages, financing mechanisms and user/consumer acceptance.
Proposals addressing short-to-medium term research should comply with one or more of the following guidelines:
- Deliver results, which will accelerate the market penetration of innovative energy technologies with a particular emphasis on 2010 energy policy objectives.
- Consist mainly of integrated demonstration actions with a typical research component of up to about 20% and including, where appropriate, pre-normative research, energy technology integration, dissemination and technology transfer activities. The risks to be addressed are mainly technological and might include market related and financial issues.
- Demonstrate reductions in the costs associated with implementation of new technologies and/or demonstrate how innovative technological solutions can be integrated under full-scale operating conditions.
- Provide inputs for the future development of energy policy and legislation, including the improvement of existing regulatory measures, whilst serving EU research and related policies.
The research components of short to medium term projects should adopt a multidisciplinary approach, including, where appropriate, socio-economic research on the future policy, market and end user impacts of the innovative energy technologies involved, in addition to technology focused research.

Cost-effective supply of renewable energies

Actions should be aimed at bringing the next generation of more cost-effective renewable energy technologies to the market, with particular emphasis on markets in Europe. The results should enable these technologies to compete in the liberalised energy markets of the future with substantially reduced levels of subsidy, and also help to bring them within reach of developing countries. The main tasks to be carried out will explore ways to reduce the costs of the energy delivered by specific renewable energy technologies, in the form of green electricity, heating/cooling, and liquid/gaseous biofuels.

Electricity from biomass and/or waste derived fuels including solid as well as liquid resources e.g. black liquor, and waste recovered fuels (including the biodegradable fraction of Municipal Solid Waste) or effluents e.g. sludge. Projects should focus on one or more of the following: optimisation of the fuel supply chain taking into consideration all aspects of fuel production (in case of dedicated energy crops and short rotation forestry) and preparation of the fuel to high standards and specifications; combinations with fossil fuels designed to guarantee the continuous supply of electricity to final users, such as advanced co-firing and co-combustion; innovative technologies for large scale electricity generation, such as integrated gasification combined cycle plants, dedicated gasification to power plants, biomass boilers, flash pyrolysis applications where the emphasis is placed on achieving high conversion efficiencies and high reliability of the technology.

Electricity from wind : projects should focus on one or more of the following: innovative wind farms, turbines, and components for reliable electricity generation at reduced costs; design tools including advanced modelling of large turbines and the corresponding site assessments, that facilitate a move towards design limits, new design principles and materials, including more realistic load assumptions for a new generation of machines; Actions aiming to facilitate the large scale deployment of wind energy in unconventional sites including offshore, extreme climates, and complex terrains.

Electricity from photovoltaics. Priorities to be addressed are: Innovative manufacturing concepts for high efficiency PV cells/modules to be integrated into larger scale (multi- MW) photovoltaic production facilities in order to lower the Wp cost; and including low cost integrated components or devices for grid connected or stand alone PV generators; Actions aimed at kick-starting Si-feedstock production by EU industries to secure a reliable and affordable supply for fostering PV cell cost reductions; Transfer to industrial scale of a new generation of PV technologies / products to facilitate the integration of innovative solutions at lower costs; Large area, low cost photovoltaic modules for building integrated PV (BIPV) including architectural roof integration, and autonomous solar electricity generation systems in industrialised and developing countries; Integration of photovoltaic installations in generation schemes to feed local distribution grids, closer to the point of use and development of new devices and systems to manage these installations.

Electricity from other renewable energy sources - projects should focus on one or more of the following: Solar thermal power for the large scale generation of electricity using power tower, trough or dish technologies, delivering reliable supplies of electricity to the grid at competitive prices; Geothermal energy for electricity generation and/or combined heat and power (CHP) generation employing innovative, environmentally sustainable and cost competitive technologies; Small-scale hydro power plants, for electricity generation with reduced costs, acceptable environmental impacts and competitive performance; Ocean energy technologies, including wave, ocean current and tidal technologies, which are ready for demonstration at full scale with a view to commercial exploitation.

Heat/cooling from renewable energy sources: projects should focus on one or more of the following : Heat from biofuels and/or waste derived fuels, including applications in industry and in buildings, as well as CHP, either individually or with district heating. Preference will be given to novel systems that utilise liquid or gaseous biofuels; Solar heating and cooling based on a new generation of solar water heating, solar space heating and/or cooling systems, or “combi-systems”, which are designed for large scale production with improved performance and reduced costs; Solar industrial process heating or solar desalination systems with improved performance at competitive costs; Geothermal energy for heating and cooling employing innovative environmentally sustainable and cost competitive technologies, including ground coupled heat pumps.

[NOTE: Priorities in the 3rd and 4th SMT Calls for Proposals are presented in sections 6.1.3.1.4 and 6.1.3.1.5.]