The idea of the DESERTEC project, to make use of the enormous energy potential of the desert in North Africa and the Middle East (MENA), has caused quite a stir.  Solar and wind energy on a giant scale are soon to supply local electrical demand and, starting in 2020, will even contribute to the European grid. Commentary on the subject has been mixed, with some talking about neocolonialism and the crowding out of decentralized renewable energy, and others talking about peace promotion and ensuring water and energy security.  In light of the most recent developments in the far flung parts of the Arab world in North Africa, other questions are coming to the fore:  Could the mega-project be the key to the regional stability in the EU-MENA region?  Would it contribute to economic development and political participation of the general population?  Or will European companies and local elites be the only beneficiaries?

At an event organized by the German Council on Foreign Relations (DGAP), to which the DESERTEC Foundation and the German development agency, the Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), were also invited, there seemed to be a general consensus about the question of whether or not the Mediterranean solar plan presented an opportunity for sustainable development of the EU-MENA region.  Representatives of the DESERTEC Foundation, as well as representatives from the German Environment, Development, and Foreign Ministries were generally convinced that the desert energy project would have primarily positive effects.  The discussion focused more on the "how" and less on the "whether or not" of the realization of DESERTEC; few critiques were fully addressed.  Current political developments were not seen as a threat to the project’s implementation.  Rather, they were depicted as an opportunity to address fundamental questions, such as subsidies for fossil fuels in MENA countries, within the framework of a democratization process.  Yet discussion of emerging price hikes on the relevant countries was left open.

The question of whether electricity from the first reference project in Morocco should be immediately exported to Europe or used in the MENA-Region proved to be divisive.  The greatest obstacles for the project were thought to be the realization of a single European energy market and the construction of expensive, cross-border transmission lines.  Despite the many enthusiastic perspectives on the issue, the dominant issue seems to be how to finance the undertaking—a topic no one wanted to take up.  Further questions, such as how much of a catalyst would be necessary to get the ball rolling and who should take on such a feat, were also left unanswered.  (Lena Donat)

Additional information concerning DGAP can be found at http://www.dgap.org/.

For more information in the DESERTEC project, please visit http://www.desertec.org/de/.

Published in: ECC-Newsletter, 1/2011