The University of Ulster will open a 'green' energy research center in fall 2002.
The university, located in Jordanstown, Northern Ireland, will offer sizable grants to both small-scale and larger commercial projects aimed at creating various forms of renewable energy.
Wind, photovoltaics, which are similar to solar panels, and hydroelectric power projects are all expected to receive large grants, but there is a possibility of new forms of renewable energy resulting from the unprecedented amount of money being put into the program.
Northern Ireland already has a firm commitment to renewable energy, with some 3,000 consumers already using the technology. That compares to 25,000 in the whole of the United Kingdom.
'Our consumers already pay a high price for conventionally generated electricity, yet have agreed to pay a premium on top of that to guarantee that their supplies from renewable sources,' said Sir Reg Empey, minister for Enterprise Trade and Investment.
