Anyone who visits the Sahara is impressed by the sun and heat in this desert. Apart from a few oases with only small vegetation, the rest are mostly covered with rocks, sand and dunes . But the inexhaustible solar energy here is enough to provide the Earth… comfortable.
According to world statistics, if the Sahara were a country, it would be the 5th largest in the world, larger than Brazil and slightly smaller than China and the US.
According to NASA estimates, each square meter of the Sahara receives between 2,000 and 3,000 kilowatt hours of solar energy per year. Total energy generation is estimated at 22 billion gigawatt hours per year.
If the Sahara desert were turned into a solar power plant, its power output would be equivalent to more than 36 billion barrels of oil per day.
What will happen when people turn the entire Sahara desert into a solar farm, then this desert will generate about 2,000 times more energy than the world’s largest power plants combined today. again.
Its power output will be equivalent to more than 36 billion barrels of oil per day. In terms of consumption demand, the energy provided by the Sahara desert will be 7,000 times greater than the electricity demand of the whole of Europe. It is worth mentioning that the energy from this desert is clean energy, with almost no carbon emissions.
Besides, the Sahara also has the advantage of being very close to Europe. The shortest distance between North Africa and Europe is only 15km in the Strait of Gibraltar (British land).
If it’s for Africa, then only a small part of the Sahara is needed. And it is hoped that, if solar technology improves, things will become much cheaper and more efficient.
The Sahara may be harsh for most plants and animals, but it can bring sustainable energy to life across Africa and beyond.
In 2009, a project called Desertec was born to serve the production of solar energy from the Sahara desert. It quickly received a lot of money from various banks and energy companies.
But only a year later, the project collapsed, investors withdrew because the production costs were too high. In addition, such projects also include many political, commercial and social risk factors. Perhaps this is the biggest reason preventing the endless resources of the black continent to be untapped?