The
Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating Station, the world’s largest
concentrating solar power (CSP) facility, was dedicated Thursday
afternoon at a ceremony keynoted by U.S. Secretary of Energy Ernest
Moniz.
In his remarks, Moniz hailed the Obama administration’s leadership on supporting renewable energy projects.
“President Obama and the Department of Energy [DOE] are committed to ensuring that all sources of energy are competitive in a carbon-constrained economy,” he said. “This is why we have already invested more than $6 billion in carbon capture and sequestration technologies and recently announced up to $8 billion in available loan guarantees for advanced fossil energy projects that lower emissions.” Making that happen is an imperative, Moniz noted. “Investing in clean energy isn’t a decision that limits our economic potential—it’s an opportunity to lead the global clean technology markets that are forming right now,” he said. “We simply can’t afford to be at the back of the train—we have to be at the front, leading the world in these industries.”
Moniz stressed that the DOE is looking to support more projects like Ivanpah. “We have over $40 billion to spend on clean energy projects,” he said. “Bring them on!” He cautioned, though, that the DOE was not looking to dictate to the market, “but to help provide the options that all of you in your various roles play in determining what the private solutions are,” he said. “There’s no one solution. The ‘all of the above’ approach is working.”
The inauguration was fairly elaborate for a power plant opening, and featured an appearance by Grammy-nominated band The Fray, which filmed a music video for its forthcoming album at the site last year.
Big Output, Big Footprint
Comprising three units with a total capacity of 392 MW (377 MW net), Ivanpah is a joint effort between NRG Energy (through its subsidiary NRG Solar), Google, Bechtel, and BrightSource Energy. The station uses 173,500 heliostats (each with two mirrors) to concentrate sunlight on three 459-foot towers (Figure 1). Four types of heliostats are used depending on the distance from the tower; the furthest out are more than half a mile away. All of them were precisely placed using GPS to ensure accurate alignment. The heliostats are capable of withstanding 85-mph winds.
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In his remarks, Moniz hailed the Obama administration’s leadership on supporting renewable energy projects.
“President Obama and the Department of Energy [DOE] are committed to ensuring that all sources of energy are competitive in a carbon-constrained economy,” he said. “This is why we have already invested more than $6 billion in carbon capture and sequestration technologies and recently announced up to $8 billion in available loan guarantees for advanced fossil energy projects that lower emissions.” Making that happen is an imperative, Moniz noted. “Investing in clean energy isn’t a decision that limits our economic potential—it’s an opportunity to lead the global clean technology markets that are forming right now,” he said. “We simply can’t afford to be at the back of the train—we have to be at the front, leading the world in these industries.”
Moniz stressed that the DOE is looking to support more projects like Ivanpah. “We have over $40 billion to spend on clean energy projects,” he said. “Bring them on!” He cautioned, though, that the DOE was not looking to dictate to the market, “but to help provide the options that all of you in your various roles play in determining what the private solutions are,” he said. “There’s no one solution. The ‘all of the above’ approach is working.”
The inauguration was fairly elaborate for a power plant opening, and featured an appearance by Grammy-nominated band The Fray, which filmed a music video for its forthcoming album at the site last year.
Big Output, Big Footprint
Comprising three units with a total capacity of 392 MW (377 MW net), Ivanpah is a joint effort between NRG Energy (through its subsidiary NRG Solar), Google, Bechtel, and BrightSource Energy. The station uses 173,500 heliostats (each with two mirrors) to concentrate sunlight on three 459-foot towers (Figure 1). Four types of heliostats are used depending on the distance from the tower; the furthest out are more than half a mile away. All of them were precisely placed using GPS to ensure accurate alignment. The heliostats are capable of withstanding 85-mph winds.
Continue
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