Sunday 1 July 2012

Project Description


While investments are increasing significantly on Renewable Energy, after definition the target of 20% share of renewable energies in the EU's energy mix by 2020, the sector is suffering from "Skill Gaps" in all-over Europe. Moreover, there is no adequate provision of standardised vocational training addressing technicians and skilled workers in considerable number of European countries.This is indicating the fact that actors of vocational education must cooperate intensively to increase the quality of vocational education in that field. In order to meet mentioned needs, this partnership will be a platform to establish European Cooperation in vocational education of Renewable Energy Sector in partner countries with the participation of educational institutions, universities, and enterprises. Via project activities, partners will be able to experience the context of renewable energy sector and provided vocational education in partner countries. Besides, conducting field and literature researches, all the partners will make contributions to Country and Benchmark Reports which are the main outputs of the project. The Final Conference will also be good opportunity to disseminate knowledge and experiences acquired during the project.

Gathering all project information and experiences, this partnership is expected to lead partners to make follow up projects to produce several or all of the following products in decided renewable energy fields:

- analysis and prognosis of the vocational training requirements,
- training curricula,
- teaching materials, kits
- transparency and certification

Saturday 30 June 2012

Partnership Meeting V (İzmir)

It was good oppurtunity for the Project to combine our dissemination activity and International Energy Symposium of Ege university. İzmir welcomed us with it’s very nice weather. Location of the Symposium Center was choosen very well, in Konak, the heart of the İzmir. That allowed us drop in at historical and very well known places of İzmir, Kemeralti Bazaar, Clock Tower, Historical Elavator, Kordon Street. And symposium itself, it was very well organized and beneficial symposium for us. 

We have find oppurtunity to meet not only with project partners, but also with many diffrent bodies, companies and universities around the world. Among all sessions, I liked most the” Nedo Project” session which reveals many diffrerent approaches for energy efficieny renovation of public buildings. Besides, dinners in Lamia Boat and Homeros Valley was very nice and unforgettable memories of the meeting. Finally, we have reached the end of Project. I believe we had very beneficial experiences in renewable energy sector of partner countries. 

We have new and different point of views after all mobilities and Project effort. The Project outcome will reflect all these acquirement. But for me, the most significant acquirement was knowing each others. I hope to work these valuable partners in very near future again. 

Barış Özçelik (Mimar)


The 5th and last transnational RENEWVET meeting took place in Izmir between the 28 and 30 th June. This final meeting had two main objectives: the presentation of the final benchmark report to all partners and also to participate in the 6th International Edge Energy Symposium and Exhibition being held in the city. It turned out to be probably the most pleasant of all meetings because most of the hard work had been done and our hosts: Edge University, represented by Mr. Mete did an excellent job in receiving us. 


After 13 hours of travelling from Portugal, with stop offs in Barcelona and Istanbul, we arrived in Izmir airport. At about midnight we took a taxi to the University guesthouse. Thus, we were pretty tired the following morning when we all met up at the impressive Ataturk Cultural Center where the symposium was being held. On this first day we saw some presentations and were glad to see the importance being given to renewable energies by so many countries and dedicated people. In the afternoon we all met and Mr. Baris presented the benchmark report which was very objective, concise and to the point. We discussed a few twitches it may need and also the final report to our wonderful project. After the meeting we had a bit of free time so we rambled through the local bazaar which was fascinating. What we were not expecting was the fantastic evening meal on board a boat in Izmir bay which was offered to everyone who attended the symposium. It was really an amazing experience. 

On the second day of the meeting some of the partners gave a presentation at the symposium. ETP Sicó felt quite honored to be part of such an impressive event considering that we came from a small renewable energy vocational school. Everything went well and we were even asked some questions by the people assisting. This second day was wrapped up by a fantastic meal on top of the mountain which overlooked the city and its beautiful bay. 

On our last day we took advantage of the fact that all the hard work had been done and scheduled a trip to Ephesus and spent some time rambling through the magnificent ruins they have there, before returning to Istanbul and flying home. 

Stephen Thomas (ETP Sico)
Guilherme Vieira (ETP Sico)

The 5th and Final Transnational conference coincided with the 6th Ege Energy Symposium (http://www.egeenergy.org/) taking place from 28-30 June, 2012 organised by Ege University. This was the perfect platform to bring this project to an end as the conference/ symposium was attended by hundreds of people coming from all over the world, literally! The RENEWVET partners were accommodated at EGE's guesthouse which was to a very good standard and even had WIFI in all the rooms. This is always important as everyone still needs to be able to respond to emails/ queries - even when abroad. The first day saw the final conference of the RENEWVET project where we drew together the final outputs of the project (Benchmark Report, Blog, Final Report to Leonardo) and discussed our contributions to the "6th International Ege Energy Symposium and Exhibition (IEESE-6)"

The second and third day were spent attending the many interesting presentations, speeches and the exhibitions from local and international organisations active in renewable energy technologies. The most excitement was to see how big the sector has become and how much interst there is in Turkey. We (Embrace) were especially excited as we submitted a Transfer of Innovation project together with EGE University & the Austrian Institute of Technology to transfer renewable energy training methodologies to from UK/ Austria to Turkey. Now, in retrospect, we are even more excited to have been granted the project and to have visited Izmir again for the first Kick-off meeting on the RES II project (Renewable Energy Specialists II).

The last 2 years have really culminated in the successful cooperation with professional partners and taking the next step of working on developing a standardised training course for IVT/ PLM involved with renewables, especially electricians, plumbers, heating engineers and other related professions. To have the same standard across the EU when it comes to having people trained on renewables is very important because it allows for workforce mobility and well-installed systems and technologies. This is important because the sector is relatively new and needs to be promoted still. This is best done by highlighting well-running systems (whether domestic or commercial), being installed properly by trained and qualified people. The sector is one of very few sectors that still enjoys healthy growth and it is the sector of the future - having a clean and stable energy supply will become ever more important for Europe and the World.

Dirk Bischof (Embrace)

Friday 2 March 2012

Partnership Meeting IIII (Mojmirovce)

At the evening of 27th, we arrived to Hotel Castel in Mojmirovce, the hotel made us very suprised. Because it has been very unusual with it’s baroque architecture, large rooms and high ceilings. It gave me the impresion that I live in 1700’s. It was a nice experience for me.

First day of the meeting, we carried out a visit to hydro plants of Slovakia, Gabcikova plant is also impressed us very much. Our guides was so anthesuastic to inform us about the plant and water issues in Slovakia. We have also found opputunity to observe operation of one turbine. After then, we went to “Boat Locks”. This was the first time I have seen such mechanism which let boats proceed through the navigation channels from one side to others, we remember the genius of Da Vinci’s one more time.

Second day, we had very fruitful meeting, reaching agreement for all remaining tasks, benchmark report, conference, articles etc. 

Finally, we are leaving Slovakia with nice impressions and memories of beautiful Danub River. 

I would like to thank Zuzana and her team form warm welcoming and hospitality. 

Barış Özçelik

Now we are at nearly the end of this project.We visited two different countries for this meeting.First we came to Wien from İstanbul.Then went to Bratislava and stayed one day –near the home of presedent .During our trawell the interesting thing was; i asked how can we go our final destination mojmorovce and nobody knows the village.İt was wery difficult to spell the name of the village.The hotel that we stayed in Mojmorovce was memorable.İt was very historical and mystic place .Visiting the hydroelectric power plant was wery interesting and benefical for me. Connecting cities wiht water channels –even Bratislava to Nederland-is wery good idea and efficient project. 

Things on my mind after slovakia:

  • Artistic hotel
  • Windy hydro plant
  • Miss my three month old baby.

See you in Turkey!

Serdar Öksüz

Slovakia meeting was good for the project progress. it was benefitical for final to the some of project tasks. We can say that project almost finished. And we think that the result will be satisfying. 


First day we visited a hydro power plant in Slovakia. We saw turbines in operation. We talked about country reports and banchmark reports which are prepared for each partner's contrubution. The Project continues non-stop and still so much work to do. Next stop will be held in Izmir on betweeen 28th-30th June 2012. Until then have successful days for everyone. See you soon. 

 Firat-Gyuner

The 4th transnational meeting in Slovakia consisted on completing the agenda set out at the previous meeting in Portugal. Each group had to provide feedback on each part of the benchmark report allocated to them. All partners met in a pleasant hotel in Mojmirovce, a town near Nitra. On day one of the meeting our hostess, Zuzana accompanied us on a technical visit to Hydropower plant Gabcikovo, on the Danube. This turned out be very impressive. Mr. Holcik – chief of the Slovak Dam Counsel, gave us a very complete guide of how everything worked. We were even taken to visit the innards of the dam to see the huge turbines in operation. At the end of the day we enjoyed a delightful Slovakian meal in the hotel. 


On day two all partners met in the conference room of the hotel to carry out the previously established tasks. Some minor issues arose regarding some of the conflicting values in the reports, however these were expected and easily corrected. We also discussed the final format of the benchmark report and the next – and final – transnational meeting in Iznir, Turkey. To conclude, this last meeting was as successful as the others, perhaps even more so, since we are all familiar with each other now and work is made easier. We are already regretting the fact that the meetings are coming to an end, however this meeting has allowed to discuss possible future projects.

Stephen Thomas
Guilherme Vieira

We arrived in Slovakia (Bratislava) on a very early flight from London (6.20 am from Stansted). This meant we were up at 3am in the morning…. We arrived in Bratislava and took a taxi to the Main Bus Station to get our bus to Nitra (1.15 h) and from there another taxi to the Hotel as there were no local buses at that time. We arrived just around lunch in Manorhouse Mojmírovce (http://www.vic.sk). After lunch we settled in and caught up on some sleep.

This day was planned to be for arrival of all participants. The next day (29th Feb) was spent on a technical visit to a hydropower plant (720MW) in Gabcikova, which supplies 10% of Slovakias electricity. A former director of the plant, Mr Holcik, did the plant tour and his knowledge was just immense. He knew every little details surrounding the plant from the geography, political context and of course all the technical information. The initial environmental concerns dissipated over the years and actually the dam and the hydropower plant had several positive environmental effects:

  • Protection of the area against floods, which caused big damages in the past - Regulation of the water level of Danube, which means year-round navigability of the river;
  • Stabilisation of the stream improved environmental parameters: improved quality of potable water and it stopped falling groundwater level (which improves conditions for agriculture and stops desiccation of floodplain forests, as a result of closing up meanders).
  • Stabilisation of the bottom and stream of the Danube

As this day also started very early (6.30 am) everyone was tired when we came back. The hotel facilities provided the necessary balance to the day and we checked out the swimming pool, sauna and local shopping amenities. The next day was our partnership meeting where we discussed the Country Reports, Benchmark Reports and also made important decisions to the submission of articles to Ege’s Energy Symposium in June etc. The late afternoon was spent on cultural visit to Nitra, the next largest town. On Friday we will have yet another early start at 6am to make our way to Nitra, then by bus to Bratislava and then London. We would like to thank our Slovakian partner for the hospitality and the well-arranged technical visit. By now we have seem so many great examples of how to use natural resources in the different partner countries so that an overall picture emerges to use them more wisely and responsibly.

Dirk Bischof

It was my first time in Slovakıa. It is very beatiful country. It is clean and has natural beauty.First of all thanks for organization for Slovak team.The hotel was very interesting and traditional. The meeting was beneficial and the atpmoshere was friendly. Visiting of Hydro power plant was good idea. It was amazing to visit this area. Thank for everything to Slovak team specially Zuzana 

Yıldırım Özkaya