The HYBUILD project is funded by the European Union through HORIZON 2020, and focuses on the development of two innovative compact hybrid electrical/thermal storage systems for stand-alone and district connected buildings. HYBUILD will develop an innovative hybrid storage concept for cooling and heating energy provision, as well as for domestic hot water production, suitable for both the Mediterranean and the Continental climate. These configurations will allow for energy savings ranging from 20 to 40% on an annual basis in both Mediterranean and Continental climates.

The HYBUILD systems combine thermal (sorption, latent and sensible) and electric storages in one system. Solar energy can be stored in the sorption storage (Mediterranean concept) as well as in an electric storage (both concepts). The electric power within the systems is provided by a DC-bus system, which is more efficient than a state-of-the-art AC based system. The DC architecture is expected to reduce the volume of conversion and distribution by 1/3 as compared to an AC architecture while, a long term reduction of the costs by about 20% is realistic.

HYBUILD’s hybrid storage systems will be used to upgrade facilities in existing buildings in three different demo sites. One of the project applications will be implemented by the Municipality of Aglantzia in cooperation with FOSS Research Centre for Sustainable Energy of the University of Cyprus and other partners. The proposed system will be installed on a vernacular dwelling located in the historic core of Aglantzia, which will be used as a Renewable Energy and smart solutions Center by the municipality with the support of the University of Cyprus. Particular emphasis will be placed on the preservation of the building’s cultural heritage values and on the assessment of innovative technologies’ contribution to the rehabilitation of historic buildings and settlements.

This project will use a 48-month work programme and 9 work packages (WP) to integrate the diverse sectors, skills, and capabilities of the consortium in a coherent evolution of the planned work that will lead to the successful completion of the project’s objectives. The project is led by the Spanish group COMSA Corporación and it associates 21 partners from 9 EU countries. It started in October 2017.