EU-SOLARIS: The European Research Infrastructure Consortium for CSP Technologies

Abstract

After many years of fruitful collaboration in the field of research infrastructures (RIs) for concentrated solar power/solar thermal energy applications, several European countries decided to apply to the European Commission to go a step forward and create a European Research Infrastructure Consortium (ERIC), a new legal form of association which poses a number of advantages in the endeavour for a further development of this technology in Europe at all levels. This new consortium, EU-SOLARIS ERIC, is likely to be legally implemented in October 2022, after a long negotiation and evaluation process, where the support of the respective Governmental research agencies of the countries involved has been crucial. EU-SOLARIS ERIC will be a legal entity and its main goal will be the improvement of the interoperability, accessibility and quality of services provided by the existing European research infrastructures to the CSP/STE research communities and industrial stakeholders. Although the current Members of the EU-SOLARIS consortium are Germany, France, Cyprus and Spain (Statutory Seat at Plataforma Solar de Almería, Spain), plus Portugal as an Observer, it is open to any other country willing to participate as Member or Observer.

Keywords

• Research Infrastructure
• Concentrating Solar Power
• Solar Thermal Energy
• EU-SOLARIS
• European Research Infrastructure Consortium