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World’s largest solar power plants with thermal storage to be built in Arizona

Bob Morris, on Apr 28, 2009, 6:15 am
concentrated solar-thermal power

concentrated solar-thermal power

Solar thermal stores the heat from the sun in tanks filled with molten salt so they can generate energy at night. Fascinating stuff, and a proven technology too. And now Arizona will be getting the world’s largest such facility.

Right now concentrated solar-thermal power is still expensive, but as more come online, the price will continue to drop for this clean, renewable energy source.

Tags: | Category: Renewable energy, Solar power | 2 comments - (Comments are closed)

  • http://www.buildyourownsolarpanels.info Martin

    These solar mega-projects are indeed fascinating but they have one disadvantage compared to residential solar panels. A portion of electrical power is lost when it is transmitted over distance. Putting solar panels on rooftops in population centers puts the power right where it is needed.

  • http://www.asymptoticlife.com DJ

    OTOH residential solar (so far) doesn’t generate at night, requiring either expensive battery storage or alternate sources of power. The thermal storage of the mega-plants makes 24-hour generation possible.