AUSTELA

Concentrated solar thermal power (CSP) company Vast Solar has recently been awarded the Technology Innovation Award at the International Energy Agency's SolarPACES 2019 Conference in South Korea.

The award recognises their progress in the development of their world-first CSP technology that combines the use of a modular tower system with molten sodium as the heat transfer fluid.

Vast Solar is aiming to develop a cost-competitive dispatchable power system that takes advantage of both the reliability of trough plants and the high temperatures (and therefore high thermodynamic efficiencies) of central tower systems.

The technology has been proven in a pilot plant constructed in Jemalong, New South Wales. The demonstration plant is capable of producing up to 6MWth and 1.1MW of electricity generation and received grant funding from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency.

Following the award ceremony, CEO Craig Wood said: “We are now totally focused on developing our Reference Plant which will prove the technology at commercial scale. From there, we anticipate our technology playing a critical role in energy production in suitable climates around the world, generating clean, reliable energy at low cost.”

Vast Solar has been working on the development of a commercial-scale 30 MW CSP plant and it recently announced the completion of capital raising.

Vast Solar website

In the latest iteration of the Australian Federal Government's approach to new electricity generation, they have called for responses to a concept of underwriting new generation investments new investment "in firm or firmed generation capacity to increase competition and reduce electricity prices. The new program also aims to improve reliability and security by increasing the level of firm capacity in the system." See https://www.environment.gov.au/energy/underwritingnewgeneration

Austela has provided a submission to this process (LINK).

The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) issued a Request for Information (RFI) to test the market for CST projects in Australia. The RFI process closed on 31 July 2017 and a synthesis of responses, prepared by ITP, is now publically available. The report can be downloaded HERE.