Proposed by the Club of Rome, an international group of experts that suggests solutions to global problems, Desertec became an industrial project last month when the reinsurer Munich Re sponsored a kick-off at its headquarters in the Bavarian capital.Desertec would be the world’s most ambitious solar power project.The founder companies of the Sahar Solar Project, whose regional focus is on Europe, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), will be: 

• ABB 
• ABENGOA Solar 
• Cevital 
• Deutsche Bank 
• E.ON 
• HSH Nordbank 
• MAN Solar Millennium 
• Munich Re 
• M+W Zander 
• RWE 
• SCHOTT Solar 
• SIEMENS 

Solar power plants could supply the whole world with clean energy, says scientist Gerhard Knies.

Desertec Industrial Initiative,DII uses carefully positioned mirrors in the Sahara desert to boil water and activate turbines. According to the Desertec Foundation, the technology of the solar project is based on a concentrated solar power plant (CSP). This works just like a coal steam power plant except that instead of coal, the power plant operates solely on concentrated solar power. The mirrors work to reflect and concentrate solar energy, which are transmitted to Europe and Africa by a super grid of high-voltage direct power cables. Prof. Udo Ungeheuer, Chairman of the Management Board of SCHOTT AG told MediaGlobal, “Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) technology is a crucial element of the Desertec project. SCHOTT has been involved in this type of solar technology from the very beginning. Today, our receivers form the heart of solar power plants that utilize parabolic trough technology. They can be found in the Nevada Solar One power plant located near Las Vegas as well as the Andasol power plant in Spain, the first commercial power plant of its kind in Europe. We consider ourselves to be the global leaders in terms of both technology and market share with our solar receivers.” U.S. solar power firm First Solar and several other companies recently joined the Desertec project, which is aimed at powering Europe's homes with green electricity from North Africa.

Italian utility Enel, Spanish grid operator Red Electrica, French building materials maker Saint Gobain and Moroccan energy holding Nareva joined the Desertec project, the initiative said Monday.The Desertec Industrial Initiative will work with Morocco in the next month to arrange negotiations with the European Union to provide so-called feed-in tariffs for electricity produced by using large mirrors in the desert, Paul van Son, who heads the initiative, said today in an interview. "Morocco is the first African, Arab and Muslim country to engage at the highest level to organize such a national event," adding it would "inspire millions of people to make a personal commitment to the environment for Earth Day and beyond." She praised HM King Mohammed VI, who "has personally overseen development of the National Charter for the Environment and Sustainable Development" through "a process of consultation at the national level." She called attention to Morocco's new $9 billion solar energy project as a sign of its dedication to harness the sun in the Sahara as renewable energy for a green economy.  By 2020, Morocco expects renewable energies to account for 42% percent of its total installed power. She noted HM King Mohammed VI has also launched a project to plant one million palm trees by 2015.