Torresol Energy says that a EUR171 million financing deal will allow it to start construction of Gemasolar, the world’s first commercial-scale solar thermal plant to use central tower and salt receiver technology.
Torresol – a joint venture between Spain’s Sener and Masdar of the UAE – secured the financing on the open market and is aiming to start operating the 17 MWe plant in 2011. The project will help the company to establish itself as a world leader in solar tower technology, according to its Chairman, Enrique Sendagorta.
“The construction of Gemasolar represents a gigantic step forwards in Torresol’s technological development,” said Sendagorta “This strategic alliance brings the best of Abu Dhabi and Spain together to help drive forward the large scale deployment of renewable energy projects. The response of the financial markets is further proof that the industry will continue to advance.”
Lead arrangers in the financing include Banco Popular, Banesto and Instituto de Crédito Oficial. Masdar and Sener announced their intention to build and operate large-scale concentrated solar power (CSP) plants around the world in March 2008.
The Gemasolar project is a world-first due to the application of this technology in a commercial environment. The plant will consist of a solar field of heliostats that reflect the sun’s light on to a central tower. The energy received is used to heat up salts in the tower, which then raise steam to drive a steam turbine.
The technology represents a considerable advance over existing solar thermal technologies, says Torresol. “Gemasolar is an important milestone for the CSP industry and its success is likely to revolutionize this industry,” said Dr. Sultan Al Jaber, Chief Executive Officer at Masdar, which is spearheading development of Abu Dhabi’s carbon-neutral city and other clean energy initiatives.
“Masdar is very excited at the prospect that this technology promises to deliver and look forward to building similar but larger capacity towers in Abu Dhabi and elsewhere using this technology.”
Construction of Gemasolar will be undertaken by a consortium led by Sener and AMSA, a subsidiary of ACS Cobra. Sener will be in charge of providing the technology, the detailed design and plant commissioning.
Major advances included in the proposed plant design include a thermal molten salts storage system, which is capable of reaching temperatures of over 500°C and which enables the plant to produce electricity for 15 hours without sunlight. It will also have larger heliostats, the positions of which have been optimised by Sensol software.
The salts are made from sodium and potassium nitrates and the high temperatures at which they can operate help to generate hotter and more pressurized steam in comparison with other solar tower plants.
Torresol’s long-term goal is to develop 320 MW of CSP capacity by the end of 2010, reaching 1000 MW in ten years. It wants to introduce and test new technologies in every project in order to increase the competitive position and reliability of CSP technology.
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