SOFIA ENERGY CENTRE LTD.

EAST GSR

Solar Thermal Applications in Eastern Europe with Guaranteed Solar Results

Supported by:

A 36-month project to encourage the emergence of a sustainable solar thermal market with the GSR quality approach in Bulgaria, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia in partnership with Austria, France, Germany and Greece.

Disseminating the GSR concept
Renewable energies development and, more particularly, solar thermal energy is a key issue to reduce the coming years energy consumption increase. Hot water production from solar energy is a well-known option to favour when taking into account Eastern European countries solar radiation.
Since the early 1990 s, professionals working in the solar thermal sector have developed collective solar systems for hot water supply using a quality approach adapted to present day needs. It is now possible to guarantee by contract the technical and economic performance of a solar thermal system using the Guaranteed Solar Results (GSR) procedure. This has been first developed in France and then disseminated throughout EU15 with the support of Thermie and ALTENER programmes.

To promote the competitive use of solar thermal energy and allow the emergence of national sustainable thermal solar markets, the project has 3 main objectives:
• Adapt and transfer the GSR quality approach to the 5 Eastern European partners Countries
• Implement pilot projects and feasibility studies to show the reliability of collective applications
• Widely disseminate and promote the GSR approach to all the potential concerned stakeholders (solar energy professionals, financing institutions, public/private decision makers, end-users) to increase confidence and remove the remaining barriers for a massive use of this technology. Training and networking will be an integrated
part of the dissemination action.

Expected Results
• Transfer the GSR charter, improve solar thermal equipment quality and installation
• Train professionals to increase know-how as for design and operation of collective solar thermal systems
• Encourage the integration of solar thermal systems in the building construction process
• Implement one complete telemonitoring system per country on an existing collective solar thermal installation with theoretical GSR contract and assess performances to demonstrate reliability and increase professional confidence
• Realise feasibility studies on Domestic Hot Water (DHW) solar systems (using GSR contract) on new potential sites and present results and potential projects to potential investors, financial institutions and promoters
• Network and disseminate project results to encourage potential clients and investors to consider thermal solar technology as a mature and trustworthy one
• Promote this quality approach at EU 25 level

Project brochure