Spanish cleantech company Abengoa has completed 80% of a 280MW solar thermal plant in near Phoenix, Arizona in the United States. The Solana facility will be one of the largest in the world to use parabolic trough technology when it is fully-operational in the middle of 2013. It includes a six hour energy storage capacity, allowing the plant can continue to produce power on cloudy days or after the sunset. Read More

Solana, the largest solar power plant in the world

New Energy World Network (29 November 2012):

Solana, the largest solar power plant in the world

Spanish cleantech company Abengoa has completed 80 per cent of a 280MW solar thermal plant in Arizona.

The Solana facility will be one of the largest in the world to use parabolic trough technology when it is fully-operational in the middle of 2013.

It includes a six hour energy storage capacity, meaning the plant can continue to produce power on cloudy days or after the sunset.

Once completed, the array will be comprised of 32,000 collectors, powering 70,000 homes and reducing annual carbon emissions by 470,000 tonnes.

The project is supported by a Department of Energy (DOE) loan guarantee worth $1.45bn, which facilitated fundraising with the Federal Financing Bank.

Source: www.newenergyworldnetwork.com

Background information from Abengoa Solana:

Solana, one of the largest solar power plants in the world, is a 280 megawatt (MW) parabolic trough plant with six hours of thermal storage. The plant will be located 70 miles southwest of Phoenix, near Gila Bend, Arizona. Construction began at the end of 2010 and Solana will begin operation in 2013.

Abengoa Solar received a federal loan guarantee from the U.S Government in the amount of $1.45 billion, which facilitated the financial closing with the Federal Financing Bank (FFB) and the start of the plant´s construction.

Solana, using parabolic trough technology, will have six hours of molten salt thermal energy storage, which will allow energy to be dispatched as needed during cloudy periods and after sunset. Solana, therefore, will be able to generate electricity well into the evening to help meet the summer peak demand for air conditioning.

Environmental – social – economic benefits

Solana´s production will be the equivalent of energy needed to serve 70,000 households and will prevent 475,000 tons of CO2 emissions per year, as compared to a natural gas plant.

The construction of Solana will create 1,600 – 1,700 new jobs and over 85 permanent jobs. Also, the construction and operation of the plant will generate thousands of indirect jobs.

From an environmental perspective, Solana will provide Arizona citizens with clean, pollution and greenhouse gas free energy. At the same time, Solana will reduce Arizona’s need for fossil-fuel based energy generation, eliminating nearly 500,000 tons of carbon dioxide emitted into the atmosphere each year. These reductions will contribute to Arizona state goals for renewable energy deployment as well as national targets to reduce the negative impact of climate change.

Source: www.abengoasolar.com

Here’s the 2010 pre Christmas story from The Arizona Republic:

Arizonans don’t need to wait for New Year’s to toast the future. We can raise a glass now to a giant solar plant that will finally go into construction.

On Tuesday, the U.S. Department of Energy finalized a $1.45 billion loan guarantee for Abengoa Solar’s Solana project near Gila Bend.

The plant, which will sell all its power to Arizona Public Service, had been stalled for lack of financing when credit dried up during the recession. The loan guarantee unlocked the gears and won’t cost taxpayers a dime if the loan is repaid as planned.

And what benefits it can bring.

Solana offers the clean energy, jobs and economic vitality that Arizona needs right now. Getting some good publicity for a change is an added bonus.

This will be the world’s largest concentrating solar-power plant, using the sun’s heat to generate electricity for up to 70,000 households. It will be able to produce energy for up to six hours when the sun isn’t shining, thanks to an innovative molten-salt system for storing heat.

Solana will create up to 1,700 construction jobs and 85 permanent ones.

A mirror-manufacturing factory, with nearly 180 workers, will be built in Surprise. That positions Arizona to become a supplier for future solar plants.

The Arizona Corporation Commission set the stage for this pace-setting project by adopting a renewable-energy standard, which lays out targets and provides support with a small surcharge on electric bills.

Source:  www.azcentral.com