World Future Energy Summit in Abu Dhabi to assess the role of the sun in solving the world's energy crisis

To meet the world's demand for energy, some experts say we need look no further than the next sunrise. As one website promoting solar energy provocatively puts it, 'The earth receives more energy from the sun in just one hour than the world uses in a whole year'.

But of course it is not quite that simple in practice. First we have to develop the best technologies to translate even a little of that energy efficiently into electricity. Then we have to pay for their implementation on a massive scale.

These issues around solar energy technology and its economic viability will be under the microscope at the World Future Energy Summit (WFES), which takes place from 21 to 23 January in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. WFES is the first international conference on green energy following the historic agreement reached by the UN Climate Change Conference in Bali earlier this month.

Dr. Pitz-Paal believes the prospects for the solar energy industry are very positive, saying 'One percent of the surface of the Sahara desert is enough to meet the World's entire electricity demand using Concentrated Solar Power technologies, and now it's time to start harvesting!'

There are others who have reservations though. Gennaro De Michele, Executive Vice President at ENEL Research, who will participate in the same session at WFES, believes that major obstacles such as long-life storage and long distance transportation remain to be overcome before solar power becomes a major contributor to the world energy grid.

'Massive use of solar power will require adaptation of the world's energy system to the new technologies (especially in energy storage and transportation) and new strategies. This implies great opportunities -- and, clearly, some risks -- for existing companies and operators,' he says.

Two main methods of harvesting the sun's rays are currently available. The most familiar to the general public is photovoltaic (PV) cell technology, where sunlight is converted directly into electricity by panels of solar cells. PV technology can power calculators and watches, or provide hot water at home through roof panels. But it may not be viable for power generation at a massive level.

The technology which is generally proposed for harvesting solar energy at large scales in the Sunbelt is Concentrated Solar Power (CSP). This method concentrates the sun's rays to heat water, producing steam which drives turbines to generate electricity in an otherwise conventional way. CSP has great potential for large-scale power generation, but has the aforementioned storage and transportation problems.

Abu Dhabi has a strong commitment to pioneering future energy solutions, inspired by the environmentalist ethos of modern Abu Dhabi's founding father, H.H. Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan. This legacy is being maintained and developed by his sons, Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, patron of WFES, and H.H. President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan. Their commitment is epitomised by programs like Masdar, the host of WFES and Abu Dhabi's multi-faceted initiative which is today's source for tomorrow's energy.

'Masdar is investing in projects that take existing technologies to scale. We are also committed to leading the way in developing and investing in a broad range of innovative solar power solutions that have enormous potential for this region and the world,' said Ziad Tassebehji, Director of Masdar's Innovation and Investment Unit. 'From concentrated solar power to thin-film photovoltaics, Masdar is advancing a portfolio of solar options -- developing new technologies, reinventing proven ones to take them to the next level and committing to bring them to an economy of scale.'

Another contributor to the WFES discussions on solar energy will be Jeremy Leggett, chief executive of Solar Century, the UK's largest solar solutions company. He says, 'The opportunity now is for solar power to take enormous bites out of traditional markets, much bigger and quicker bites than most people believe possible, I suspect.'

The environmental group Greenpeace will also be participating at the summit. Commenting on the pros and cons of solar energy, Sven Teske of the group's Climate and Energy Unit agrees that 'the upfront investment costs are relatively high.' However, he adds that 'Once we reach the economies of scale, solar will be a competitive or even cheaper energy source than many fossil fuels.'

A great benefit of solar power is its positive impact on climate change. It produces no greenhouse gases directly. Of course, a conference such as the World Future Energy Summit does itself create greenhouse gases. However, consistent with its overall theme and vision for the future, the organisers are working with the CarbonNeutral Company to make WFES a CarbonNeutral® Event.