The Scientific and Technological Alliance for Guaranteeing the European Excellence in Concentrating Solar Thermal Energy (STAGE-STE) is the largest Solar Thermal related project under the previous block of EU research funding, FP7. The project engages all major European research institutes with relevant and recognised activities on Solar Thermal Electricity (STE) and related technologies, in an integrated research structure. The partner list also includes relevant industrial and international organisations.

STAGE-STE is divided in two distinct but closely interlinked work package groups: The coordination and support work packages and the Research Work packages. The role of the coordination and support group is to intensify the cooperation to more efficiently coordinate, complement and reinforce the

activity of the different R&D European Research Centres on the CSP/STE field. Therefore, adding efforts and reducing overlaps, a more comprehensive portfolio of capacities and installations could be offered to accelerate the technology transfer to the European industry and to make possible the maintenance of its current world leadership.

The research work packages cover the whole spectrum of topics related with Concentrated Solar Energy and addressing, within the 4 years of project duration, those considered as the most urgent activities to be done. In addition to the multiple and specific technical objectives of the different activities, the whole research component of STAGE-STE project intends to demonstrate and start to run the feasibility of deeper and effective integral European collaboration and coordination. The research topics include thermal energy storage, materials for solar receivers and STE components, solar thermochemical fuels, solar desalination, and linear and point-focusing STE technologies.

CyI Principal Investigator: Prof. Costas N. Papanicolas