European Partnerships and Projects
EERE engages through regional partnerships, as well as bilaterally with individual countries in the European region. Some of the following documents are available as Adobe Acrobat PDFs. Download Adobe Reader.
Regional Partnerships
U.S.-European Union Energy Council
The EU-U.S. Energy Council was created in November 2009 to deepen the transatlantic dialogue on strategic energy issues and establish low carbon energy sources, while strengthening scientific collaboration. The Energy Council has created three working groups that focus on Global Energy Security and Markets, Energy Policy, and Technology Research, Development and Demonstration (RD&D). EERE participates in the Technology RD&D working group in four areas: 1) biofuels; 2) energy efficient buildings; 3) hydrogen and fuel cells; and 4) solar power.
EERE and the EU-U.S. Energy Council are helping to bring together subject-matter experts from Europe and the United States to coordinate activities and share information. This cooperation will propel energy policy and deployment, and to accelerate the development of clean energy technologies.
Collaboration on the Solar Decathlon Europe
Developed under a 2007 MOU between DOE and Spain's Ministry of Housing that provided for two events over four years, the first Solar Decathlon Europe in 2010 brought 17 innovative solar houses and 190,000 visitors to Madrid, Spain. The SDE 2012, which will also be held in Madrid, will kick off on September 14.
In March 2012, DOE and the French Ministry of Ecology, Sustainable Development, Transport and Housing signed an MOU regarding the 2014 competition, which will take place in Versailles, France.
The Solar Decathlon is a biennial competition that challenges teams of university students to design, build and operate solar-powered houses that are cost-effective, energy-efficient and attractive. The winner of the competition is the team that best blends affordability, consumer appeal, and design excellence with optimal energy production and maximum energy efficiency.
See the Solar Decathlon page for more information about the DOE competition, or visit the Solar Decathlon Europe website.