Words

• abundant = enough of something
• advantage =benefit, good side
• aquifer = underground layer of water
• assure = promise
• competitive = so that you can earn money
• consume = use up
• co-owner = if something belongs to you and someone else
• copper mine = place where copper ( a yellowish soft metal) is dug out of the ground
• development bank = bank that finances projects in other countries, especially those of the Third World
• efficient = here: it works well and is cheaper
• energy plant = factory or building that produces electricity
• entrepreneur = businessman
• excess = what you do not need
• fossil fuels = energy that comes from organic material, like coal, oil or natural gas
• government = the people who rule a country
• grape vine = a long plant that grows up a piece of wood and has grapes on it
• grid = electrical system of a country
• implement = to make something work
• irradiation = here: the intensity that the sun shines with
• irrigate = to bring water to a normally dry area
• lack = not enough
• limited = not in a very great amount
• loan = money that you borrow and must pay back later
• opportunity = chance
• power = to give energy to
• profitable = make money
• rate = price
• reconfigure = to organize something differently so that it works with another setup
• renewable = something that can be used over and over again
• resource = raw material
• solar panel = flat object that you put on a roof ; it collects and uses the sun’s energy to heat water or make electricity
• source = where something comes from
• subsidy = money that you get from the government to make prices lower
• supply = produce
• sustainable = without causing damage to the environment or able to continue for a long time
• uncertainty = something that is not clear
• unforgiving = very difficult to live in
• venture = project