Press release, Bonn, 20th January 2010

The International Renewable Energy Agency one year on

IRENA turned out to be a success many had not believed in. At EUROSOLAR we were convinced from the very beginning that it was right to take this road. Our tenacity was rewarded: We came a long way but finally achieved our target.

Berlin conference highlighted new developments in storage technology

The conference proceedings of the IRES 2009 are now available on CD-Rom! Click here to order.

Valentin Hollain and Helmut Lölhöffel

IRES, the fourth international EUROSOLAR-technology conference, according to all participants, provided an overview on the advances in the storage of energy generated from renewable sources.

Nearly 400 experts from 22 countries discussed about the technological options of storing energy from the renewable source at the Berlin Representation of the Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia on 24th and 25th November 2009. The conference attracted record attendance and was being held, as in previous years, in association with EnergyAgency.NRW. Meeting the general request put forward to her, EUROSOLAR managing director Irm Pontenagel announced that the IRES series would continue with its fifth conference next year. The view in the professional energy storage world is that IRES has developed into the central platform for sharing knowledge and exchanging ideas on one of the key issues of future energy supply.

Article by Dr. Hermann Scheer published in the Ode Magazine (Special Copenhagen Edition), December 12, 2009

To unlock the economic and environmental benefits of renewable energy, dismantle the conventional power industry!

Humanity stands on the threshold of an era of unprecedented opportunities. In the past decades, many innovative new technologies have become available and affordable that can transform our current economies based on polluting fossil fuels into sustainable renewable energy economies. This transformation will provide millions of new jobs. It will halt global warming. It will create a more fair and just world. It will clean our environment and make our lives healthier. However, for all this positive change to happen, we don't need an international climate treaty. We don't need a Copenhagen Protocol, just like we didn't need a Kyoto Protocol. In fact, these international attempts stand in the way of the progress almost all of us need.

Article by Dr. Hermann Scheer published in the Climate Action Book 2009 for the UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, December 2009

Among the many myths about our energy supplies, one of the most insidious is the high price of renewables. If all energy alternatives are too expensive, the argument runs, then the world should continue on its course of dependence on fossil-based sources. In this article Hermann Scheer debunks this myth and explains why we must keep developing the renwables, describing how each affected industry can make the most of the new opportunities.