The PV DATABASE for urban PV applications
www.pvdatabase.org PVdatabase.org has been collected to disseminate important results, experiences and lessons learnt on urban applications of PV (PhotoVoltaic solar energy). It contains a comprehensive review of PV projects in the built environment in Europe and other IEA countries. In the 1990s many building integrated PV solar energy (BIPV) projects were realized in Europe and Japan. Since 2000 projects have been realized in many other countries. Large markets have developed in some countries e.g. in Germany and Japan. In the PV database all important data and issues regarding relevant PV installations are presented to allow experiences to be internationally assessed and disseminated. The database is designed to serve the needs of the customers and other stakeholders of PV: municipal officers, architects, property developers, constructing companies, grid operators, financing companies, building owners and policy makers. PVdatabase.org is built, owned and operated by HORISUN Renewable Energy Strategies on behalf of the PV-UP-SCALE consortium and IEA PVPS Task 10 and financially supported by the EC's Intelligent Energy for Europe program (50%) and Horisun (50%) under the so-called PV-UP-SCALE project. The Urban Wind website and database www.urbanwind.org and www.urbanwind.net The major objectives of the websites are to: - Identify the conditions that need to be established for the integration of small wind turbines into the urban environment; - Promote the emergence of this technology as a real option for electricity supply in towns and cities across Europe; - Raise awareness amongst municipal authorities and decision-makers, because the promotion of wind energy technology in the city clearly rests on the involvement and take-up of this option by decision-makers at the local, city-wide level. For this reason several large European city authorities are associated to this project and will participate in activities for the duration of the project. The involvement of these municipalities represents a learning experience which will become an incentive for other European communities to get involved with this energy option in the future and provide the first step toward greater awareness of the potential of exploitation of wind energy in the city; - Assess and improve the prospects for social, aesthetical, architectural and urban planning acceptability of such wind energy applications by raising public awareness, defining performance and technical guidelines. Urbanwind.org is built, owned and operated by HORISUN Renewable Energy Strategies on behalf of the so-called WINEUR consortium and financially supported by the EC's Intelligent Energy for Europe program (50%) under the WINEUR project. The PV-UP-SCALE project www.pvupscale.org PV-UP-SCALE stands for PV in Urban Policies: a Strategic and Comprehensive Approach for Long-term Expansion and was a project carried out and subsidized within the framework of the EC's Intelligent Energy-Europe (IEE) program. The objective of this project was to enhance the large-scale implementation of dispersed grid-connected photovoltaics in the urban environment. Drivers were identified that can stimulate decision makers to apply solar energy, bottlenecks have been addressed that will hinder them. Solutions for the bottlenecks have been proposed and best practices presented to the stakeholders in the process of planning, application and use of PV. The information needs were identified with the help of key stakeholders in the participating countries. Horisun participated in this project to share the lessons-learnt in Dutch building integrated PV projects in general and in three unique large-scale urban PV settlements in particular with other EU countries. The pvnord project www.pvnord.org There are very few Building Integrated PV (BIPV) projects in Northern Europe. A harsh climate, low prices of energy and conservative construction traditions have limited the use of grid-connected PV systems in buildings. The existing energy systems vary greatly between the different countries, and include both cheap energy from non-fossil fuels like hydro and nuclear power stations, and extensive use of fossil fuels. Horisun participated in this project to share the lessons-learnt in Dutch BIPV projects with Nordic partners. |
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