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As outlined in the European Strategic Energy Technology Plan (SET-plan), energy technologies will be crucial to successfully combat climate change and to secure world and European energy supply. Achieving Europe 2020 and 2050 targets and visions on greenhouse gas emissions, renewable energy and energy efficiency will require the deployment of more efficient and new technologies.
In this framework, fifteen leading European Research Institutes have taken up the challenge to found a European Energy Research Alliance (EERA).
The key objective of the EERA is to accelerate the development of new energy technologies by conceiving and implementing Joint Research Programmes in support of the Strategic Energy Technology (SET) plan pool and integrate activities and resources, combining national and Community sources of funding and maximising complementarities and synergies.
An overall number of 9 Joint Programmes have been launched since EERA's founding:
- Photovoltaic, Wind Energy, Smart Grids and Geothermal (launched at the SET-Plan event held in Madrid in June 2010)
- Carbon Caputre and Storage, Materials for Nuclear and Bioenergy (launched at the SET-Plan event held in Brussels in November 2010)
- Concentrated Solar Power and Ocean Energy (recently approved by the EERA Executive Committee and are officially launched at the SET-Plan event, in Warsaw, November 2011).
Thanks to these first Joint Programmes, more than 1200 researchers from over 80 research institutes are actively collaborating today in the EERA Joint Programmes, identifying and bringing together national centres of excellence in the energy research sector, and highlighting common needs, objectives and areas of research for the 2013-2020 programming period.
The Joint Programmes are in the areas of “Smart Cties”, “Advanced Materials and Processes for Energy Applications”, “Energy Storage” and “Fuel Cells and Hydrogen” are launched during the SET Plan Conference in Warsaw, November 2011