Renewable Energy Technology Assessments - Kauai Island Utility ...

Kaua’i Island Utility Cooperative
Renewable Energy Technology Assessments
3.0 Renewable Energy Technology
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Of the four technologies, parabolic trough represents the vast majority of installed
capacity, primarily in the US desert southwest. There are nine SEGS (Solar Electric
Generating Station) parabolic trough plants in the Mojave Desert that have a combined
capacity of 354 MW. These plants were installed from 1985 to 1990 and have been in
continual operation since that time. Other parabolic trough plants are being developed,
including a 50 MW plant in Nevada. Small parabolic dish engine systems have been
developed and are now being actively marketed. These dishes are typically about 25 kW
in size. The US government has funded two utility-scale central receiver power plants:
Solar One and its successor/replacement, Solar Two. Solar Two was a 10 MW
installation near Barstow, California, which is no longer operating due to reduced federal
support and high operating costs. A project is proposed in Australia to build a 200 MW
solar chimney. The estimated cost is $700 million and would include a chimney one
kilometer (0.62 mi) tall with an accompanying greenhouse 5 km (3.1 mi) in diameter.
Resource Availability
Concentrating solar thermal systems (troughs, dishes, and central receivers) use
direct normal insolation. Lower latitudes with minimum cloud cover offer the greatest
solar concentrator potential. An advantage of solar thermal systems, and all solar
technologies generally, is that peak output typically occurs on summer days when
electrical demand is high. Solar thermal systems with storage allow dispatch which can
improve matching to peaking requirements.
Cost and Performance Characteristics
Representative characteristics for the four solar thermal power plant technologies
are presented in Table 3-28.
21 March 2005 3-65 Black & Veatch