BrightSource secures all three steam turbine generators needed for Ivanpah
Now that BrightSource’s Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System (SEGS) has received final state and federal approval, we are pushing forward and breaking ground this month on a truly historic project. We’re excited to be planning this next phase of our work to bring clean, reliable renewable energy to the state of California.
As we wrote recently, we’re well on our way towards securing the materials and equipment we’ll need to build the world’s most efficient solar power plant. In September, we announced our agreement with Riley Power Inc. to purchase three boilers for the Ivanpah SEGS. Today, we’re happy to announce that we’ve signed contracts with Siemens to purchase two steam turbine generators for use at Ivanpah, adding to the one turbine purchased in December 2008. The Ivanpah complex will consist of three power plants, and we’ve now secured the steam turbine generators and boilers needed for all three.
The steam turbine generators occupy a very important function in BrightSource’s proprietary LPT 550 solar thermal power plants. By combining our own innovative and proven solar technology with conventional power components, we are able to provide clean energy with similar reliability characteristics found in traditional power plants. The fact that we can match the temperature requirements of today’s most efficient superheated steam turbines is what allows our plants to produce the most efficient solar power in the world.
For each of the three plants, thousands of mirrors will direct sunlight toward a boiler, also known as a solar receiver steam generator. The superheated steam produced by this boiler powers a turbine, which generates electricity. We’re working with Siemens to implement turbine generators that will optimize the steam generated by Riley Power Inc.’s boilers and BrightSource’s own technology, maximizing the amount of electricity that the SEGS will produce.