Ausra Inc., a developer of utility-scale solar thermal power, announced today it is building the first U.S. manufacturing plant for solar thermal power systems in Las Vegas. The 130,000-square-foot, highly automated manufacturing and distribution center will produce the reflectors, towers, absorber tubes, and other key components of the company’s solar thermal power plants.
The plant is scheduled to begin regular operation in April 2008.
Ausra claims its innovations in mirror systems have brought the price of solar power down to the level of gas-fired power today, and will soon reach prices associated with coal-fired generation.
Bob Fishman, president and CEO of Ausra said, “Ausra can fill four square miles with solar collectors every year from this one factory, enough to provide market-priced zero-pollution power to 500,000 homes. Americans want clean power, and are tired of the market fluctuations, price increases, and pollution from fossil power plants. With market-priced solar power, we are entering the Solar Decade, in which massive construction of solar plants will take place. We are investing now in the systems and capacity to serve that need.”
In November 2007, Ausra and California utility PG&E announced a power purchase agreement for a one-square-mile, 177-megawatt (MW) power plant, enough to power over 120,000 homes, to be built in central California.
Ausra’s new Las Vegas facility will manufacture the solar field equipment for the PG&E project and for other power projects throughout the American Southwest. The factory, the first of its kind in the U.S., will be capable of making over 700 MW of solar collectors per year.
Rob Morgan, Ausra executive vice president and chief development officer said, “We chose to locate in Nevada because it is the center of America’s solar energy future. Nevada has massive solar resources, available land and a growing demand for clean energy, with huge markets next door in California and neighboring states projected to demand many thousands of megawatts over the coming years. Nevada’s business-friendly climate, excellent transportation and workforce resources, and large-scale need for clean power made it the obvious choice.”
Ausra’s Compact Linear Fresnel Reflector (CLFR) solar technology utilizes the heat from the sun’s rays to create steam. Solar collectors boil water at high temperature to power steam turbine generators, in much the same way as traditional fossil-fuel power plants, but without use of fuels or emissions.
About Ausra
Ausra, Inc. develops and deploys utility-scale solar thermal power technology to serve global electricity needs in a dependable, market-competitive, environmentally responsible manner. Headquartered in Palo Alto, Calif., Ausra is a privately held company funded by Khosla Ventures and Kleiner, Perkins, Caufield & Byers.
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