Problem to be solved
For the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the price index for oil, gas and their overall average has more than doubled in just 10 years with spikes of more than tripling.
Fluctuations in electricity prices in the EU-28 are less explicit than fluctuations in primary fossil fuels according to Eurostat, but an upward trend in consumer electricity prices is also evident. Even during the financial crisis of 2007-2008 there was only a status quo in electricity prices, no downward trend. Eurostat indicates a rising trend in gas prices in EU-28, with gas prices (rise at 10% per year) fluctuating more than electricity prices (rise at 5% per year).
The construction of the energy market today and the (central) way energy is generated and distributed makes families and businesses very dependent on those fossil energy sources, the energy suppliers and the distribution network. The impact on their budgets is increasing and unpredictable.
The large part of the answer today lies in the alternative energies such as Solar PV, wind and biomass. They can provide for sustainable energy sources. Except for the initial investment they are free. The problem is that these energy sources are intermittent, unpredictable and therefore hard to manage. This is a major drawback in the development of renewable energies as a backbone of the energy mix.
Insufficient ability to compensate for fluctuations is not a far-into-the-future scenario. Already today, there are periods in which feed-in from renewable energy sources is higher than off-peak electricity demand in some regions (e.g. Denmark and Germany).
To answer all of these challenges, a new product has been developed under the leadership of Dr. Hugo Vandenborre. It has a tradename Solenco Powerbox™ (Solar Energy Conversion Powerbox™ ).