The following resources cover ESA-funded projects and open tools relevant to EO users working on renewable energy
resource assessment, site suitability, installation monitoring, and grid planning spanning solar, wind, and hydro
applications.
Green transition platform
ESA Green Transition Information Factory (GTIF) — Energy Transition
GTIF's Energy Transition domain provides interactive tools for exploring the suitability of locations at 10 m
resolution for solar and wind energy expansion, accounting for terrain, distance to grid, settlements and
protected areas. Additional capabilities include: hydropower reservoir monitoring via satellite altimetry
(Sentinel-3); rooftop PV potential and yield assessment for cities; wind turbine detection from Sentinel-2
imagery; and offshore renewable energy siting (solar, tidal, wave, wind) with a harshness index for site
characterisation. Expanding from the initial Austria demonstrator to Baltic States, UK, Ireland and France.
EO for energy transition
ESA EO4Energy
ESA's dedicated initiative for exploring and promoting the use of EO technology across the energy transition
— covering solar site selection and performance monitoring, offshore wind characterisation using SAR data,
hydropower resource assessment, grid infrastructure monitoring, and renewable energy plant performance.
Provides a knowledge hub with use cases, project portfolios and guidance for energy sector users new to
satellite data.
Solar irradiance data
CAMS Solar Radiation Service
The Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service provides free, open historical time series of global, direct,
diffuse and direct-normal solar irradiation from 2004 to near-present, derived from geostationary satellite
data (Meteosat, Himawari) combined with atmospheric modelling. Globally available for clear-sky conditions;
regional all-sky products cover Europe, Africa, the Middle East and Asia. Accessible via the Atmosphere Data
Store as on-demand point queries or gridded datasets. The primary satellite-based solar resource input for
planning, yield prediction and grid integration studies.
Atmospheric composition forecasts
CAMS Global Atmospheric Composition Forecasts
Near-real-time global forecasts of atmospheric composition produced twice daily, including aerosol optical depth, dust loading, and water vapour. These variables directly affect how much solar radiation reaches the ground, making CAMS forecasts essential for solar energy nowcasting and short-term PV yield prediction. The dataset complements the CAMS Solar Radiation Service by providing the atmospheric context needed for real-time applications such as grid balancing and energy trading.
PV yield calculator
JRC PVGIS — Photovoltaic Geographical Information System
A free, open web application from the EU Joint Research Centre that estimates photovoltaic system performance
and solar irradiation for any location in the world. Outputs include monthly and annual electricity
production, hourly time series, Typical Meteorological Year datasets, and off-grid system sizing — for
grid-connected, stand-alone and tracking PV configurations. No registration required; results downloadable as
CSV or JSON. Based on satellite-derived radiation data including CAMS, SARAH and NSRDB. PVGIS 6 (with bifacial
and advanced grid-connected configurations) is in beta.
Global solar resource
Global Solar Atlas
A free, map-based platform from the World Bank Group / ESMAP providing global solar irradiation and PV power
potential data at ~250 m resolution, based on over two decades of satellite observations. Offers interactive
maps, a simplified PV output calculator, country-level fact sheets and GIS-ready data downloads (CC BY 4.0).
The standard pre-feasibility tool for solar developers, governments and development banks — particularly in
markets where ground measurement data is sparse. Pairs naturally with the Global Wind Atlas for hybrid
assessments.
Global wind resource
Global Wind Atlas
A free, web-based tool from the World Bank Group / ESMAP and DTU Wind providing global wind resource data at
250 m resolution, derived from ERA5 reanalysis downscaled using the WAsP mesoscale and microscale modelling
approach. Includes mean wind speed, power density, capacity factor estimates, and an energy yield calculator
using user-defined turbine power curves. Coverage extends 200 km offshore. GIS layers downloadable at country
and regional level. The reference tool for preliminary wind site screening and policy planning globally.
Ocean wave forecasts
Copernicus Marine Service — Global Ocean Waves Analysis and Forecast
Regularly updated global maps and short-term forecasts of ocean wave conditions, including significant wave height, direction, and period. Critical for offshore wind farm operations: wave conditions determine when maintenance vessels can access turbines and when jack-up barges can operate. Also relevant for wave and tidal energy resource assessment. Produced by the Copernicus Marine Environment Monitoring Service (CMEMS).
Ocean wave reanalysis
Copernicus Marine Service — Global Ocean Waves Reanalysis (WAVERYS)
A multi-decadal historical record of global ocean wave conditions, providing consistent wave height, period, and direction data from 1993 to the present. Used for long-term site characterisation of offshore wind and marine energy locations, climate resilience studies, and validation of extreme wave statistics that feed into offshore structure design standards.
European river discharge
Copernicus European Flood Awareness System (EFAS) — River Discharge Forecasts
Observed and forecasted river discharge data across Europe, produced by ECMWF under the Copernicus Emergency Management Service. Provides medium-range (up to 15-day) and seasonal outlooks of river flow relevant to hydropower production planning, reservoir management, and flood risk to energy infrastructure. Available as gridded datasets and at specific gauge locations via the Climate Data Store.
Global river discharge
Copernicus Global Flood Awareness System (GloFAS)
A global-scale counterpart to EFAS, providing river flow forecasts, hydrological indicators, and flood-risk data worldwide. Supports hydropower production planning in non-European basins, resilience assessment of energy infrastructure to flood events, and evaluation of climate-driven water resource variability. Produced by ECMWF under the Copernicus Emergency Management Service.
Drought monitoring
European Drought Observatory (EDO)
A monitoring tool from the Copernicus Emergency Management Service providing drought indicators, maps, and time series at European level. Drought conditions directly affect hydropower generation and cooling water availability for thermal plants. EDO offers near-real-time and historical data on soil moisture anomalies, precipitation deficits, and vegetation stress, supporting seasonal planning for water-dependent energy assets.
All-source renewable atlas
IRENA Global Atlas for Renewable Energy
An open GIS platform from the International Renewable Energy Agency allowing users to overlay and download
data on all major renewable energy resources — solar, wind, hydropower, bioenergy, geothermal and marine —
alongside ancillary layers such as transmission networks, road infrastructure, protected areas, population
density and topography. Functions as a simplified GIS for initial zone screening and opportunity mapping.
Directly integrates data from the Global Solar Atlas and Global Wind Atlas, enabling cross-resource comparison
and hybrid energy planning.
Climate scenarios for energy
Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S)
Provides free, open climate reanalysis data, seasonal forecasts and climate projections that are directly
used in renewable energy planning — including wind speed and solar irradiance trends, extreme weather
analysis, and long-term climate scenarios for grid investment risk assessment. The C3S Energy sector services
include dedicated tools and datasets for wind and solar energy, hydro reservoir inflow forecasting and
transmission grid planning under climate change. Accessible via the Climate Data Store.
Pan-European energy-climate dataset
C3S Pan-European Climate and Energy Database (PECD)
A harmonised dataset of climate and energy variables derived from ERA5 reanalysis and CMIP climate projections, covering Europe from 1979 to 2100 under multiple emissions scenarios. Variables include wind capacity factors, solar PV yield, hydropower inflows, and electricity demand indicators. Designed for energy system planners, grid modellers, and climate risk analysts who need consistent, long-term data to stress-test infrastructure investments and generation portfolios against plausible climate futures.
Climate reanalysis
ERA5 Hourly Reanalysis on Single Levels (1940 to present)
The flagship climate reanalysis dataset produced by ECMWF under the Copernicus Climate Change Service. ERA5 provides hourly estimates of wind speed, solar radiation, temperature, and dozens of other atmospheric variables on a global 0.25-degree grid from 1940 to within five days of the present. It is the foundational input for most downstream renewable energy products, including wind resource assessments (e.g. Vortex, Global Wind Atlas), solar yield modelling, and the PECD. Freely accessible via the Climate Data Store.
Wind & solar simulator
Renewables.ninja — Wind and Solar PV Power Output Simulator
A free, open web tool that simulates hourly power output from wind and solar PV installations at any location worldwide. Users specify turbine type or panel configuration and receive modelled generation profiles based on ERA5 reanalysis data. Widely used in academic research and preliminary project assessment. Complements the Global Wind Atlas and Global Solar Atlas by providing time-series output rather than summary statistics.
Ground motion monitoring
European Ground Motion Service (EGMS)
Copernicus Land Monitoring Service product that measures ground subsidence and uplift across Europe using satellite radar interferometry (InSAR). Relevant for assessing ground stability risks to energy infrastructure, including pipelines, substations, wind turbine foundations, and dam structures. Provides millimetre-precision displacement data derived from Sentinel-1.
European grid data
ENTSO-E Transparency Platform
The official European grid transparency portal operated by the European Network of Transmission System Operators for Electricity. Provides time series of electricity generation by technology (including wind, solar, and hydro), load, cross-border flows, and planned outages. A key reference dataset for benchmarking EO-derived renewable energy estimates against actual grid data, and for understanding how renewable generation feeds into the European power system.
Global power plant inventory
Global Power Plant Database (WRI)
A comprehensive, open dataset of geolocated power plants worldwide maintained by the World Resources Institute. Includes plant type (wind, solar, hydro, thermal), capacity, fuel source, and ownership. Useful for mapping existing renewable energy assets, cross-referencing with satellite imagery for monitoring, and contextualising new site assessments against the installed generation landscape.
