World’s Second Commercial Solar Tower Plant

The PS20 solar power tower is part of the Solucar Platform, located in Sanlúcar la Mayor, Seville. It has the capability to generate 20 megawatts (MW) of electricity. This is enough to power up 10,000 homes with clean energy.

The builder was Abengoa Solar. The solar tower was put into operation in April of 2009 (Spanish News).

On top of the tower a solar receiver and a steam turbine are located. The turbine drives a generator, which produces electricity.

The PS20 uses solar thermal energy (STE) technology, which harnesses solar energy.

The PS20 will double the power of the PS10, the world’s first commercial solar tower plant, also built in the same area.

The PS20 consists of 1,255 mirrored heliostats. Each of the heliostats, or mirrors, has a surface area of 1,291 square feet (120 square meters) , located on the top of a 531 feet tower. These mirrors are movable.

But, recently Spain’s government has slammed the brakes on generous subsidies. Here’s the report from WSJ.