ESolar Signs Contract for China’s Largest Solar Thermal Project
ESolar, a global provider of concentrating solar power (CSP) plants, and Penglai Electric, a
privately-owned Chinese electrical power equipment manufacturer, recently signed a licensing
agreement to build at least 2 gigawatts (GW) of solar thermal power plants in China over the
next 10 years-- the country’s largest CSP project. The first project, including a 92-megawatt
solar power plant planned for 2010, will be located in the 66-square-mile Yulin Energy Park in
the Mongolian desert in northern China.
China Shandong Penglai Electric Power Equipment Manufacturing Co. plans to develop 2 GW
of power plants by 2021 using eSolar's solar thermal technology. The solar thermal power plants
will be co-located with biomass electricity generation facilities. When completed, the plants will
eliminate 15 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually.
ESolar became the first to build a commercial CSP tower facility in North America when it
opened the 5 MW Sierra SunTower Plant in Lancaster, CA. Under the terms of the agreement,
eSolar will give Penglai the expertise and technology to build solar “power tower” solar farms
based on the technology proven in at the Sierra Plant. ESolar already manufactures some of its
equipment in China, and will build more to supply technology for the Penglai project. But
eSolar retains control of intellectual property behind the technology.
"With Penglai as our partner and with the strong support of the Chinese government, eSolar is
proud to be the first company to deliver the benefits of cost-effective solar thermal power to
China," said Bill Gross, founder and chairman of eSolar.
ESolar's CSP plants use fields containing thousands of mirrors to concentrate the sun's rays on a
water-filled receiver on top of a tall tower. The intense heat vaporizes the water, and the resulting
high-pressure steam drives an electricity-generating turbine. ESolar’s technology uses advanced
computer software engineering to control the movements of the mirrors—allowing for the
adoption of scalable, cost-effective, reliable solar thermal power.
"Using the power of the sun, eSolar's technology minimizes the environmental impact on
manufacturing and deployment while maximizing land and cost efficiency," said Liu Guangyu,
chairman and CEO of Penglai Electric. "We are extremely grateful to the Chinese government
for playing a major role in promoting zero-carbon renewable energy."
China is currently the market leader in photovoltaic manufacturing—the most common form of
solar power, but this deal represents the country's first major move into CSP. The Chinese
government recently announced its aggressive plans to increase the country's renewable power
generation capacity to 15 percent by 2020.
China Huadian Engineering Co. will lead the construction process. At completion, China
Shaanxi Yulin Huayang New Energy Co. will own and operate the first 92 MW plant. "To date,
eSolar offers the only CSP tower technology that has demonstrated commercial maturity and
economic feasibility," added Zhao Weikang, chairman and president of Shaanxi Yulin Huayang
New Energy Co. "We're excited to build our initial hybrid plant as part of the 170-square
kilometer Yulin Alternative Energy Park, the first large scale alternative energy park in China.
Our work is aligned with the government's continuing policy to curb carbon emissions and
combat climate change."