400 bn € to be invested in Solar Power Plants?

According to the FTD, 20 German corporates including Munich Re, Deutsche Bank, Siemens and RWE plan to invest 400 bn € to build solar thermal power plants in Northern Africa. In the long run, the project is supposed to generate 15 % of Europe's electricity need.

Reading between the lines, the whole thing still appears to be rather vague: The companies want to "start an initiative" and "develop concrete plans during the next 2-3 years". They are still looking for "outside investors". And it's not even clear in which country those plants would be built (according to Munich Re, they would have to be "politically stable"). So it's not like anybody is actually committing any money at this stage. Rather, it sounds like a feasibility study.

Still, it's a move in the right direction. Certainly better than installing ever more solar cells under Germany's grey skies.