Solar thermal brings us back to the reality of industry with power plants, turbines and many would argue, scale. Commercial announcements in the sector for generation that hits hundreds of megawatts, leave little doubt that the technology is serious.

The thermal industry says that when wind and hydro are scarce during the summer, thermal can supply power for peak demand. This is quite rational when the major economists all over the world believe we need a portfolio of energy options for the future.

Using solar power to heat water that powers turbines is one side of thermal production, the other side being domestic thermal pumps. Already, Europe has seen clusters of home use and its low radiation requirements mean it has grown in the northern parts of Europe.

Solar CSP also figures strongly in the EU strategic energy plans with the Mediterranean Solar Plan seeking to generate power and desalinate water on both sides of the Mediterranean. The proposals call for 20 GW of solar energy to be produced mainly by solar thermal technology.

Subsidy wise, we are still looking at the big players of Germany and Spain to drive the sector forward, determined to own the technology and know-how that could be remarkably lucrative if it can be deployed to the Equator and beyond.

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