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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