Work on the two 50-MW CSP plants began in March 2009 and it is the first time that twin CSP plants have been built simultaneously. Both plants incorporate energy solutions developed by Sener, including molten salt thermal storage capacity of up to 7.5 hours. This means that the state-of-the-art plants will be capable of generating electricity at night and through periods of poor sunlight, enabling a continuous supply of electricity and overcoming intermittency, one of the drawbacks of some renewable technologies.
Valle 1 & 2, together with the Gemasolar power tower plant (17MW/110GWh per year), which was project financed in November 2008 and is under construction, represents a total investment by Torresol Energy of $1.4 billion over the past 12 months.
“We are very proud that the Valle 1 and Valle 2 solar plants secured this important financial support, which allows us to continue on schedule with our strategic plans,” said Enrique Sendagorta, Chairman of Torresol Energy, adding that: “With a combined production of 340 GWh per annum, which equates to the clean and safe energy for over 80,000 homes and a saving of 90,000 tons of CO2 emissions every year, Valle 1 and 2 will be leaders in the delivery of concentrated solar power and a major contribution to the region’s power supply. A significant feature of these plants will be their ability to produce electricity at night and at times of poor sunlight, which is obviously an important consideration for consumers who require and demand uninterrupted electricity supplies”.
Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, CEO, Masdar, said: “The CSP projects currently under construction in Spain will introduce and test new technologies, which will help promote CSP as an economically competitive and viable alternative to traditional power sources. Through Torresol Energy, we are actively promoting the development and operation of large-scale CSP plants throughout the world and hope to implement additional projects across Southern Europe, North Africa, the Middle East and the Southwest United States”.
The construction of the new plants will have additional benefits for Spain, such as an estimated 3,200 new direct employment opportunities during the two year construction period – with a further 150 specialised professionals required to manage operations after completion.
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