Gemasolar solar plant (molten-salt tower)
Central termosolar Gemasolar (torre con sales fundidas)
- Date
- 2011 · confidence high
- Place
- Fuentes de Andalucía, Seville, Andalusia, Spain
- Credited to
- Torresol Energy (SENER and Masdar)
- Field
- Matter & energy
What it is
The first commercial plant with a tower receiver and molten-salt heat storage: 2,650 heliostats and a molten-salt tank allow it to keep generating electricity at night. In 2013 it produced 24 hours a day for 36 consecutive days.
It applies the concept of the Solar Two demonstration (California) at larger scale and in commercial operation. “First” refers to the commercial combination of tower and molten salt.
What it led to
- dispatchable solar electricity at night
- tower plants with storage in other countries (Crescent Dunes, Noor III)
- consolidation of molten salts as thermal storage