A consortium of 12 British and Indian universities has received a £7 million grant from the UK Government to build five self-sufficient solar-powered buildings in remote Indian villages.

This is part of a new programme — SUNRISE — to develop printed photo-voltaic cells and new manufacturing processes that can be used to make solar-energy products in India. These will then be integrated into buildings in at least five villages, so they can run off-grid, using their own energy.

The programme is part of the Swansea University-led SPECIFIC project (www.swansea.ac.uk), which recently opened the UK’s first “energy-positive classroom” and revolves around a “buildings as power stations” concept.

Dave Worsley, head of research on the SPECIFIC project and leader of the SUNRISE team, said: “The energy-positive classroom we built — incorporating a steel roof with integrated solar cells — shows that this technology works, successfully turning buildings into power stations.

“The funding will enable us to export this model, by working closely with our partner universities in the UK and India.

“If we can show that this works on five villages in India, then it could be rolled out to other buildings in India — and around the world”.

Swansea University says the project is in line with the Indian government’s plans to turn the country into a solar-energy leader, leap-frogging fossil fuels and boosting the country’s manufacturing sector.

The other universities which are part of the consortium include Oxford, Cambridge, Brunel and Imperial College London. The £7 million grant comes from the UK Government’s Global Challenges Research Fund.

This supports cutting-edge research that addresses the global issues faced by developing countries.