Abengoa Lights Up Second 50-Megawatt Solar Farm

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Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland)--Spanish renewable energy giant Abengoa Solar (Seville, Spain), has begun commercial operation of a second 50-megawatt (MW) parabolic trough plant in less than a month after starting operations of a first plant.

Abengoa Solar began commercial operation of Solnova 3 last week, which is located at the Solúcar Solar Complex, in Seville, following the successful completion of operation and production testing conducted over three days. At the beginning of May, Abengoa fired up the 50-MW Solnova 1 parabolic trough plant at the same location, the company's first such plant. For additional information, see May 10, 2010, article - Sun Shines on Solnova 1 Solar Plant.

The Solucar Solar Complex boasts five other 50-MW plants in various stages of construction. When complete, the 300 MW of electricity generated will be enough for 153,000 homes. The facility will eliminate 185,000 tons of CO2 emmisions per year. The new plant brings Abengoa's solar-generating capacity to 143 MW in commercial operation, in addition to another 350-MW currently under construction across Spain.

Solnova 3 will generate enough clean energy to meet the electricity needs of 25,700 homes and offset the emission of approximately 31,400 tons of CO2. The plant was constructed by Abengoa subsidiaries Abener Energia SA (Seville) and Teyma Espana (Seville).

The Solnova 3 plant uses Abengoa's own parabolic trough technology, including the Astro parabolic trough collector, which claims greater tracking precision. Solnova 3 comprises about 984,252 square feet (300,000 square meters) of mirrors, covering an area of approximately 284 acres. The technology used concentrates solar radiation onto a heat-absorbing pipe, inside of which flows a liquid that reaches high temperatures. The fluid transfers energy to water vapour that reaches a turbo-generator, where it expands to produce electricity.

"The startup of our second parabolic trough plant was executed in record time, which proves our solid expertise in this technology," said Santiago Seage, CEO of Abengoa Solar.

The Solucar complex is home to the world's largest solar tower, the 20-MW PS20 Solar Tower Power Plant, which was commissioned in May last year. The plant is equipped with 1,255 heliostat mirrors, which reflect solar radiation into the receiver, producing steam that is converted into electricity by a steam turbine. For additional information, see May 1, 2009, article - World's Largest Solar Tower Power Plant Begins Operation in Spain.

In related news, Abengoa has secured a deal with the U.S. Department of Energy to design a power tower-technology plant with a central receiver and storage system that will allow electricity production, even when solar energy is not available.

IIR's Renewable Energy Database provides extensive coverage on the Wind Energy, Geothermal, Hydroelectric, Landfill Gas-to-Energy and Utility-Scale Solar power plants throughout North America, and is now expanding coverage across the world.

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