Solar Southwest Initiative

We now have the clean sustainable technology to end our dependence on fossil fuels.

Solar Thermal Electric also known as CSP (Concentrating Solar Power) power plants are large solar energy farms located in desert areas that concentrate the heat of the sun with mirrors. The concentrated heat of the sun is either stored or used directly to generate steam, drive a turbine and generate electricity.

Solar thermal power plants have been generating electricity since the 1980's however current policy does not enable the development of the full potential of this crucial technology. In the last few years in the Southwest, utilities are contracting to buy power from new CSP plants but most cannot afford to pay for the optional thermal storage that can hold the heat of the sun for use whenever power is needed. CSP with storage can emulate the power output of coal or natural gas power plants which is a big help to grid operators and utilities.

The deserts of the world have, in a small fraction of their area, more than enough incident sunshine to supply the power needs of all human societies. These power plants, like the one pictured above, have very little impact on the natural environment of the desert and are far preferable to the consequences, for the natural and the human world, of unchecked coal and natural gas power plant emissions.

These are the only clean, renewable power plants we currently have that can both produce the type of power that the power system needs and scale up to replace a vast majority of fossil fuel plants within the next decades.

To have an entirely clean, sustainable energy system we will have to build energy storage systems; fossil fuels have been our energy storage system for over 200 years. We have discovered in the last two decades that fossil fuel use is endangering our climate system as well as creating geopolitical and economic risks. Thermal storage is now the least expensive clean energy storage options we have, but we can only significantly reduce its cost further through deployment and economies of scale.

The Solar Southwest Initiative is working on creating the policy conditions that will allow CSP plant builders and utilities to work together to realize the potential of desert power through integrating solar thermal plants with 6 to 24 hours of thermal storage. One of the main powerhouses of our future renewable energy system will be solar thermal electric power which will reduce and eventually eliminate our dependence upon coal and other fossil fuels.

If you are interested in working with the Solar Southwest Initiative, please send an email to us at info at solarsouthwest.org.