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Content archived on 2023-03-02

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The CEA joins the European Energy Research Alliance

At the first European conference on "Low carbon energy technologies" held in Paris on October 28, 2008, ten European research institutes , all leaders in the field, signed a Declaration of Intent to develop a European Energy Research Alliance (EERA).

The CEA is one of the project's ten European founding partners. As France's leading organization dedicated to technological research on low greenhouse gas-emitting energy (nuclear, hydrogen, photovoltaic solar power and second generation biofuels), it represents France's involvement in this initiative. The ten research institutes share a strong commitment to make progress together; they already devote a combined annual budget of over €1,300 million to research and development on these energy technologies, which means that they have the capability to promote joint activities at European level. The EERA is aimed at consolidating and optimizing research capabilities in the field of energy in Europe, by encouraging the sharing of national world-class facilities located in EU Member States and promoting pan-European cooperation programs. EERA's first initiatives will focus on the strategic and targeted development of new generations of energy technologies, developing the results of fundamental research and technologies developed to maturity in labs to the stage where they can be transferred to industrial research. The Alliance's founding partners have undertaken to align their research programs in key areas, such as wind and solar power (photovoltaic and concentrated solar power), biofuels (second generation and beyond), carbon capture and storage, smart networks, materials for the nuclear power industry, fuel cells and ocean energy. The members of the Alliance aim to launch 2 or 3 joint programs in 2009. These initiatives will be stepped up once other organizations join the group of founding partners for the Alliance's to achieve its full potential. The Alliance is a key factor in Europe's Strategic Energy Technology (SET) Plan, proposed by the European Commission on November 22, 2007 and approved in 2008 at the European Council meeting in the spring. The CEA is a public research organization focusing primarily on low-carbon energy sources (nuclear, hydrogen, photovoltaic solar, and second-generation biofuels), defense activities and information and healthcare technology. With its 15,000 researchers and employees, CEA has earned international recognition and is regarded by French and European policy makers, institutions and industry as a vital source of new ideas.

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