Back in 2000-2001 I first came officialy in contact with renewable energy generation. The concept of producing electricity from the sun, the wind and the water, haunts me ever since. Especialy at that time, armed with the romanticism of youth, I was trying to find solutions to Earth's problems.
While brainstorming with myself i came up with the idea that photovoltaic panels could be installed in the sahara desert and cables running from Tunis to Sicily and from there to Italy as well as from Marroc to Gibraltar, providing Europe with 100% clean renewble and sustainabe energy, at least during the day.
Back then i tried to came up with email addresses of any north african power companies to tell them about it. I managed to find one or two (not all, unfortunately) and even I received an answer from one of them! Cant recall if it was the Lybian or the Tynis company that answered, but in a few words I as telling them, that they could install PV systems across the desert which anyway isnt densely populated (if it is at all) providing electricity to the EU and (here is the catch) holding EU by the balls!!!
I know I know, not the most compeling argument, but in my youth's rage for a better tomorrow, I was trying to think what could work as an incentive to those countries which at least in the case of Lybia back then, were considered an enemy? The obvious answer that came to me was power over their enemies, as Russia does with natural gas nowdays. So I informed them about it. They got back to me, with an argument about the huge cost of the project to which I dont remeber if I replied, (since I was feeling kinda streesed that they read the email and even got back to me) and was wondering if they might have been mocking me.
Perhaps I rediscovered gun powder and the idea had been around long before I came up with it. I dont know. But I was so freaking happy someone took notice.
Then, I deleted the emails and forgoten about it.
A few years later, Qaddafi decided to take his country out of exile and become a member of globalisation, selling oil. And my former idea came back to me. And then forgoten it again.
Sometime after that I came accross this image and again I was happy that some people were considering it.
Today, not without joy I watched on the news, Qaddafi junior giving an interview about the Quaddafi institute and how they intend to fill north Africa and the sahara desert with PV and Wind generators in order to provide energy to Europe though an underwater cable to Italy.
Enough said. The plan begun to materialise at last. And though they might grab us by the balls in the near future, I tend to think that we deserve it somehow. Time will tell
