Areva Solar

Last updated
AREVA Solar
Company typeSubsidiary of Areva
Industry Solar energy
PredecessorAusra Inc.
Founded2007 (2007) as Ausra Inc.
FounderDr. David Mills, Prof. Graham Morrison, Peter Le Lievre
Headquarters
Mountain View, California
,
United States
Key people
Sam Shakir (CEO)
Products CSP technology
ServicesDesign, manufacture and installation of solar steam generators
Number of employees
120
Parent Areva
Website www.solar.areva.com

Areva Solar was part of the renewable energies portfolio of the French nuclear group Areva, headquartered in Mountain View, California, with offices in the United States and Australia. [1] It designed, manufactured and installed solar steam generators for electric power production and industrial steam uses. [2] Before 2010, the company existed as Ausra Inc. In August 2014, AREVA announced it was shuttering AREVA Solar. [3]

Contents

History

Ausra was formed as Solar Heat and Power Pty Ltd in 2002 in Sydney, Australia. [4] The company was co-founded by Dr. David Mills, Professor Graham Morrison and Peter Le Lievre. [5] Solar Heat and Power Pty Ltd constructed a 1MW pilot solar plant at Liddell Power Station in 2005 and then began work on a 5MW extension to that project in 2006. [6] The project was renamed the "John Marcheff Solar Project" by its owner, Macquarie Generation. [7]

Solar Heat and Power relocated to the United States in 2007 and was renamed as Ausra. [8] The company began operation of its 130,000-square-foot (12,000 m2) solar thermal power systems plant in Las Vegas in July 2008. The facility was the first comprehensive solar thermal manufacturing plant in the United States. [9] [10]

In the fallout of the 2008–09 recession, Ausra laid off 10% of its workers and redirected its efforts toward making solar equipment for other companies rather than building its own power plants. [11] In October 2008, Ausra launched the 5 MW Kimberlina Solar Thermal Energy Plant in Bakersfield, California. In November 2009 the company canceled its plans to build the 177 MW Carrizo Energy Solar Farm in California.

In November 2009, Ausra announced that it was seeking to sell itself, because "it will not be able to deploy its capital-intensive solar technology on a large scale without the backing of major company." [12]

In February 2010, the Areva bought Ausra, and renamed it Areva Solar. [13] [14]

However, in August 2014, Areva exited the Solar industry following the Fukushima nuclear disaster. [15]

Organization

Areva Solar was one of four units in Areva's renewable energies business group. Sam Shakir was CEO of Areva Solar. [16] He succeeded Bill Gallo former CEO of AREVA Federal Services in 2012. In 2011, Gallo replaced Dr. Robert Fishman former CEO of Ausra. In 2007, Fishman replaced founding Ausra CEO Peter Le Lievre [17] AREVA Solar was headquartered in Mountain View, California.

Technology

Areva Solar specialized in concentrated solar power (CSP) technology, which uses lenses and mirrors to direct a large area of sunlight onto a small surface. [18] In particular, the group employs Compact Linear Fresnel Reflector (CLFR) technology, a type of CSP in which flat moving reflectors follow the path of the sun and reflect its radiation to the fixed pipe receivers above. [18] Water flows through the receivers, generating saturated and superheated solar steam, which in turn generates electricity. [19]

CLFR differs from other forms of CSP because the mirrors are flat rather than parabolic, and they turn on a single axis, following the sun. They are cheaper to produce than parabolic mirrors, and they are smaller, allowing more reflectors to be installed in less space. [20]

Projects

Areva Solar had a number of projects aimed to advance research and development activities in the renewable energy sector.

Kimberlina solar plant in Bakersfield, California, began operation in October 2008. It was the first new CSP facility in California in nearly 20 years. The Kimberlina plant had a 5-MW capacity—enough power for 3,500 homes in central California. [21] It was the first CLFR plant to be built in North America. [22]

Areva Solar commenced a 44-MW solar thermal addition with CS Energy to the existing 750-MW Kogan Creek Power Station in Queensland, Australia. This station was to produce more electricity with the same amount of coal. The project, subsidized by the Australian government, was estimated to cost A$104.7 million. It would be the world's largest solar integration with a coal-fired plant, designed to reduce the facility's greenhouse gas emissions by 35,600 metric tons annually. [23] However by March 2016 this project had been cancelled only partially completed. [24]

In April 2012, Areva Solar announced that it would build a concentrated solar power (CSP) installation in Rajasthan, India. [25] It would be Asia’s largest CSP installation and would be operated by India’s Reliance Power Limited. [26]

In 2014 the Areva CLFR Reliance Rajasthan plant was commissioned. [27]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Solar thermal energy</span> Technology using sunlight for heat

Solar thermal energy (STE) is a form of energy and a technology for harnessing solar energy to generate thermal energy for use in industry, and in the residential and commercial sectors. Solar thermal collectors are classified by the United States Energy Information Administration as low-, medium-, or high-temperature collectors. Low-temperature collectors are generally unglazed and used to heat swimming pools or to heat ventilation air. Medium-temperature collectors are also usually flat plates but are used for heating water or air for residential and commercial use.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Areva</span> Defunct French nuclear and renewable energy provider

Areva S.A. is a French multinational group specializing in nuclear power headquartered in Courbevoie, France. Before its 2016 corporate restructuring, Areva was majority-owned by the French state through the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (54.37%), Banque publique d'investissement (3.32%), and Agence des participations de l'État (28.83%). Électricité de France, of which the French government has a majority ownership stake, owned 2.24%; Kuwait Investment Authority owned 4.82% as the second largest shareholder after the French state.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gemasolar Thermosolar Plant</span> Concentrated solar power plant

Gemasolar is a concentrated solar power plant with a molten salt heat storage system. It is located within the city limits of Fuentes de Andalucía in the province of Seville, Spain.

Abengoa Solar is a subsidiary of Abengoa. Its primary activities include designing, promotion, financing attainment, construction and operation of solar power stations that use photovoltaics, concentrated photovoltaics, or concentrated solar thermal technologies. As a consequence of the heavy debt of the Abengoa group, Abengoa Solar was sold in January 2023 to Rioglass Solar Holding.

The Carrizo Energy Solar Farm was a proposed 177 megawatt (MW) solar thermal power plant, to be built by Ausra in California's Carrizo Plain, near Simmler. The location gets less sun than the Mojave Desert, where several other solar thermal plants are under consideration, but is near an existing transmission line from Diablo Canyon Power Plant, reducing the cost and time needed to construct the plant.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Concentrated solar power</span> Use of mirror or lens assemblies to heat a working fluid for electricity generation

Concentrated solar power systems generate solar power by using mirrors or lenses to concentrate a large area of sunlight into a receiver. Electricity is generated when the concentrated light is converted to heat, which drives a heat engine connected to an electrical power generator or powers a thermochemical reaction.

eSolar Concentrating solar power

eSolar is a privately held company that develops concentrating solar power (CSP) plant technology. The company was founded by the Pasadena-based business incubator Idealab in 2007 as a developer of CSP plant technology. The company aims to develop a low cost alternative to fossil fuels through a combination of small heliostats, modular architecture, and a high-precision sun-tracking system. In October 2017, an article in GreenTech Media suggested that eSolar ceased business in late 2016.

The 5 megawatt (MW) Kimberlina Solar Thermal Energy Plant in Bakersfield, California is the first commercial solar thermal power plant to be built by Areva Solar. Completed in 2008, the Kimberlina renewable energy solar boiler uses Compact Linear Fresnel Reflector (CLFR) technology to generate superheated steam. Each solar boiler has a group of 13 narrow, flat mirrors, that individually track and focus the sun's heat onto overhead pipes carrying water. The water boils directly into steam. The steam can then spin a turbine to generate electricity or be used as industrial steam for food, oil and desalination processes. The Kimberlina solar boiler currently achieves 750-degree F superheated steam. The next generation solar boiler under construction is designed to achieve 900-degree F superheated steam.

A compact linear Fresnel reflector (CLFR) – also referred to as a concentrating linear Fresnel reflector – is a specific type of linear Fresnel reflector (LFR) technology. They are named for their similarity to a Fresnel lens, in which many small, thin lens fragments are combined to simulate a much thicker simple lens. These mirrors are capable of concentrating the sun's energy to approximately 30 times its normal intensity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sierra SunTower</span> Solar power plant in Lancaster, California, U.S.

Sierra SunTower was a 5 MW commercial concentrating solar power (CSP) plant built and operated by eSolar. The plant is located in Lancaster, California. As of mid-September, 2022, the two towers that were the center of the facility are no longer standing. However the rest of the plant is still present.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Solar Euromed</span> Concentrated solar power technology

Solar Euromed is a high technology group based in France specialized in concentrated solar power technology, in activity from 2007 to 2016.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Solar power in Italy</span>

Solar power is an important contributor to electricity generation in Italy, accounting for 8% of the total in 2017. As of 2022, the country has a total installed capacity of 22.56 GW. In 2019, Italy set a national goal of reaching 50 GW by 2030.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mojave Solar Project</span>

The Mojave Solar Project (MSP) is a concentrated solar power (CSP) facility in the Mojave Desert in California, about 20 miles (32 km) northwest of Barstow. Surrounding the hamlet of Lockhart, Mojave Solar is adjacent to Harper Lake and the SEGS VIII–IX solar plant.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ouarzazate Solar Power Station</span> Concentrated solar power station in Drâa-Tafilalet, Morocco

Ouarzazate Solar Power Station (OSPS), also called Noor Power Station is a solar power complex and auxiliary diesel fuel system located in the Drâa-Tafilalet region in Morocco, 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) from Ouarzazate town, in Ghessat rural council area. At 510 MW, it is the world's largest concentrated solar power (CSP) plant. With an additional 72 MW photovoltaic system the entire project was planned to produce 582 MW. The total project's estimated cost is around $9 billion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cerro Dominador Solar Thermal Plant</span> Chilean electrical plant

Cerro Dominador Solar Power Plant is a 210-megawatt (MW) combined concentrated solar power and photovoltaic plant located in the commune of María Elena in the Antofagasta Region of Chile, about 24 kilometres (15 mi) west-northwest of Sierra Gorda. The project was approved by the Chilean government in 2013 and construction was started by Abengoa Solar Chile, a branch of the multinational Abengoa Spain. The plant was inaugurated on June 8, 2021. A follow-up project called Likana Solar bid $33.99/MWh in an auction in August 2021.

Termosolar Borges is a hybrid biomass-parabolic trough solar thermal power plant which provides electricity to Spain's transmission system. It is located about 100 kilometres (62 mi) west of Barcelona, about 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) south-east of Lleida, near Les Borges Blanques, Catalonia, Spain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bokpoort CSP</span> Concentrated solar power (CSP) thermal energy

Bokpoort CSP is a concentrated solar power (CSP) thermal energy power plant, located near Groblershoop in the Northern Cape province of South Africa. The project was procured pursuant to the Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (REIPPPP) initiated by the South African Department of Energy.

Sundrop Farms is a developer, owner and operator of high tech greenhouse facilities which grow crops using methods which reduce reliance on finite natural resources when compared to conventional greenhouse production. Sundrop Farms opened its first pilot facility in Port Augusta, South Australia, in 2010. This facility was originally designed as a Seawater Greenhouse. However, significant technology changes led to the Sundrop System, and the dissolution of the joint venture with Seawater Greenhouse Ltd. Sundrop Farms commissioned an expanded 20 ha facility south of Port Augusta in 2016. Sundrop Farms has offices in London, UK and Adelaide, Australia. In October 2016, Sundrop Farms was operating greenhouses in Portugal, the United States and had another facility planned in Australia.

References

  1. ↑ "Orano - Donnons toute sa valeur au nucléaire". www.solar.areva.com.
  2. ↑ "Orano - Donnons toute sa valeur au nucléaire". www.areva.com.
  3. ↑ "Areva Abandons Solar and Shutters Its Ausra Concentrated Solar Effort".
  4. ↑ "ABN Lookup". 1 November 2014.
  5. ↑ "Design info" (PDF). www.ausra.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 August 2011.
  6. ↑ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-04-07. Retrieved 2012-04-13.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  7. ↑ "Overview" (PDF). www.ausra.com.
  8. ↑ "News release". www.ausra.com.
  9. ↑ Ausra Opens US Solar Thermal Factory, 1 July 2008
  10. ↑ Areva Boosts Solar Supersteam Parameters in Bakersfield, Charles W. Thurston, 16 June 2010
  11. ↑ Kanellos, Michael (January 29, 2009). "Ausra Update: Layoffs Confirmed and a Change of Business Plans". Green Light. Greentech Media. Archived from the original on January 31, 2009. Retrieved 2009-01-29.
  12. ↑ Woody, Todd (November 17, 2009). "Ausra Solar Looking for a Buyer". The New York Times. Retrieved 2010-02-08.
  13. ↑ Wald, Matthew L. (February 8, 2010). "Nuclear Power Giant Buys Solar Firm". The New York Times . Retrieved 2010-02-08.
  14. ↑ "Areva To Acquire Ausra". InfoGrok. Archived from the original on 12 February 2010. Retrieved 25 January 2009.
  15. ↑ "AREVA Exits CSP after net loss in first half 2014". CSP Today. August 1, 2014. Retrieved 2014-08-01.
  16. ↑ "Bill Gallo named Areva Solar CEO - REVE". www.evwind.es. 19 February 2011.
  17. ↑ "Orano - Donnons toute sa valeur au nucléaire". www.areva.com.
  18. 1 2 "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-08-13. Retrieved 2011-06-24.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  19. ↑ "Orano - Donnons toute sa valeur au nucléaire". www.areva.com.
  20. ↑ "Compact Linear Fresnel Reflector – After Gutenberg". Archived from the original on 2011-06-28. Retrieved 2011-07-04.
  21. ↑ staff. "Mirrors Up at New California Solar Thermal Power Plant". www.ens-newswire.com.
  22. ↑ "Orano - Donnons toute sa valeur au nucléaire". www.areva.com.
  23. ↑ "Unique Solar Energy Coal Power Plant at Queensland by Areva investing in Tripe Renewable Energy Play in Biomass,Nuclear and Solar Thermal for growth - Green World Investor". greenworldinvestor.com.
  24. ↑ https://www.arena.gov.au/assets/2016/09/Kogan-Creek-Solar-Boost-Final-Report.pdf
  25. ↑ "Areva bags contract to build Asia's largest CSP solar plant in India". CleanBiz.Asia. Archived from the original on 29 May 2014. Retrieved 29 May 2014.
  26. ↑ "Areva Reaches Major Milestone on Concentrated Solar Power Project in India". Areva. Retrieved 22 May 2014.
  27. ↑ https://helioscsp.com/reliance-commissions-100-mw-concentrated-solar-power-plant-in-rajasthan-india/
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.