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52-417: The $ 2.2 billion facility was developed by BrightSource Energy and Bechtel . The largest investor in the project was NRG Energy which contributed $ 300 million. Google contributed $ 168 million. The United States government provided a $ 1.6 billion loan guarantee and the plant is built on public land. In 2010, the project was scaled back from its original 440 MW design to avoid disturbing

104-494: A new thermal plants requires up to four years to achieve 100% operating level, from the first grid connection to full production. In its seventh year (2020), the annual production was 91.1% of its advertised value. Ivanpah Solar's use of gas is as follows, expressed in million British thermal units (Btu) as reported. For comparison to the above charts, 1 MWh is about 3.4 million Btu. NR = Not reported n/a = Not available The Ivanpah Solar Power Facility served as inspiration for

156-568: A power generating company based in Princeton, New Jersey, that contributed $ 300 million. Siemens supplied instrumentation and control systems as well as steam-turbine generators. In 2009, BrightSource Energy announced plans to build a 960  MW (1,290,000  hp ) solar thermal power plant in Coyote Springs that would be on line by 2012. In 2010, BrightSource hired Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs to begin preparations for

208-631: A proposed 750 MW Rio Mesa Solar Project in Riverside County, California. BrightSource Energy Inc. is the developer for this project. The project was cancelled in 2013. In 2012, BrightSource Energy proposed to build the Hidden Hills Solar Electric Generating System Project near Charleston View, California . The project was withdrawn in 2015 due to concerns over the effects on wildlife, groundwater, cultural and historical resources in

260-677: A public offering in 2011. Its fourth round of equity financing in May netted $ 150 million, bringing total equity financing to $ 330 million to date. In November 2011, Google announced that they would stop investing in CSP projects due to the rapid price decline of photovoltaics . Google spent $ 168 million on BrightSource. In December 2011, Google and KKR & Co. announced an agreement to invest in four California solar power PV plants with total capacity of 88 megawatts. In December 2011, The California Energy Commission (CEC) began to review

312-399: A report on the project, citing water concerns, damage to visual resources, and impacts on important desert species. To conserve scarce desert water, LPT 550 uses air-cooling to convert steam back into water. Compared to conventional wet-cooling, this results in a 90 percent reduction in water usage. The water is then returned to the boiler in a closed process. Another potential issue

364-527: A synthetic fuels plant in Rialto, California , and together with ASIG it agreed with 13 airlines to provide synthetic diesel for ground services at Los Angeles International Airport . In 2010, it made a memorandum of understanding with 14 airlines to provide alternative jet fuel and diesel fuel from its planned biofuels production complex project in Natchez, Mississippi . In 2011, Rentech agreed with

416-494: Is nearly twice the pollution threshold at which power plants and factories in California are required to participate in the state's cap and trade program to reduce carbon emissions. If that fuel had been used in a Combined Cycle Gas Turbine (CCGT) plant, it would have generated about 124 GWh of electrical energy. The facility used that gas plus solar energy to produce 419 GWh of electrical energy (more than three times that of

468-403: Is the effect of mirror glare on airplane pilots. Additionally, "the power towers have 'receiver units' at their top on which the mirror fields focus their reflected light. During operation, these receiver units become extremely hot, such that they glow and appear brightly lit. ... Because they are high above the ground, these glowing receiver units will be a visible distraction to persons at many of

520-650: Is visible from the adjacent Mojave National Preserve , the Mesquite Wilderness, and the Stateline Wilderness . It is also visible from the Primm Valley resort area to the northeast. Fields of heliostat mirrors focus sunlight on receivers located on centralized solar power towers. The receivers generate steam to drive specially adapted steam turbines . For the first plant, the largest-ever fully solar-powered steam turbine generator set

572-711: The Government of Ontario to build a plant in White River, Ontario. to convert 1.3 million tons of provincial forests into jet fuel and naphtha . At the same year, it purchased the 55 MW biomass integrated gasification combined cycle power plant project in Port St. Joe, Florida . This project was halted 2012. In 2013, Rentech changed its focus from biofuels to wood pellets production. It closed its product demonstration unit in Commerce City which

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624-533: The Mojave Desert to Southern California Edison (SCE). The plants were to have a combined capacity of 1,300 MW, producing 3.7 billion kilowatt-hours per year. The Ivanpah Solar Power Facility , BrightSource's 377 MW, 3,900-acre (16 km ) plant opened on February 13, 2014. The total cost of the Ivanpah project was $ 2.2 billion. The largest investor in the project was NRG Energy ,

676-565: The Mojave Desert to break the ground for the construction. The project, which had a total cost of about $ 2.18 billion, received a $ 1.6 billion loan guarantee from the United States Department of Energy . The facility developed contracts to sell about two-thirds of the power it generated to the Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E), and the rest to Southern California Edison (SCE). The largest investor in

728-505: The United States Department of Energy . According to Synapse Energy Economics, the estimated construction cost for the facility of $ 5,561.00 per kW fell between that of coal and nuclear power plants. but this does not account for the less favorable capacity factor of solar power. In November 2014, the facility's investors applied for a $ 539 million federal grant to finance their federal loan. Contracted power-delivery performance of 640 GWh/year from Units 1 and 3 and 336 GWh from Unit 2

780-548: The Associated Press syndicated a story on every front page in America, spreading alarm about concentrated solar power (CSP) plants, which was not grounded in facts, but on one opponent's speculation." In September 2016, federal biologists said about 6,000 birds die from collisions or immolation annually while chasing flying insects around the facility's towers. Ivanpah was covered in the 2019 documentary Planet of

832-567: The California Division of Wildlife, the number of observed bird deaths, adjusted upward to account for inefficiencies of the carcass-counting, were around 3,500 bird deaths per year caused by the Ivanpah solar plant. The Ivanpah plant took steps to further reduce bird deaths. The initial reports of high avian casualties have been disputed ever since initial reports surfaced. In September 2014, for example, Renewable Energy World suggested "With its claim of 28,000 dead birds from Ivanpah,

884-603: The HELIOS One solar power plant's physical appearance in the 2010 videogame Fallout: New Vegas . The facility inspired American rock band The Fray to name their 2014 album Helios . The album art is an aerial photograph of the plant, which also features in the lyric video for Love Don't Die . BrightSource Energy BrightSource Energy, Inc. is an Oakland, California based, corporation that designs, builds, finances, and operates utility-scale solar power plants . Greentech Media ranked BrightSource as one of

936-481: The Humans . Ivanpah Solar electric production is as follows (in megawatt-hours, MWh ). Ivanpah was advertised as designed to produce 940,000 MWh of electricity per year, based on its nameplate capacity and assumed capacity factor. In its second year of operation, Ivanpah's production of 653,122 MWh of net electricity was 69.5 percent of this value, ramping up from 44.6 percent in the first year. The commissioning of

988-501: The Ivanpah facility would provide 1,000 jobs at the peak of construction, 86 permanent jobs, and total economic benefits of $ 3 billion. Elected San Bernardino County Supervisor Brad Mitzelfelt, who represents most of the California Mojave Desert, stated that the "project would create jobs for mostly Las Vegas and electricity for mostly San Francisco". The project received a $ 1.6 billion loan guarantee from

1040-542: The KOPs [Key Observation Points], including travelers utilizing I-15." According to the State of California Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission Opening Briefs regarding this project, "the project itself is visually imposing. It would cover roughly 4,000 acres [1,600 ha], most of which would be covered with mirror fields. The panoramic expanse of mirror arrays would present strong textural contrast with

1092-658: The Synhytech facility in Pueblo, Colorado . Rentech obtained ownership of the facility in 1993. This project failed and was closed at the same year due to lower than expected gas volumes. In 2000, Rentech acquired a methanol plant at Commerce City, Colorado , which was converted to a gas-to-liquids plant. In mid 2000s, Rentech planned building coal-to-liquids plants in Wyoming , Illinois , Kentucky , and Mississippi . In 2009, it unveiled plan for construction of

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1144-517: The Year" award from Power magazine. In February 2012, Ivanpah was awarded the CSP (Concentrating Solar Power) Project of the Year by Solar Power Generation USA. The project generated controversy because of the decision to build it on ecologically intact desert habitat . The Ivanpah installation was estimated, before operations started, to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by more than 400,000 tons annually. It

1196-705: The acquisition of Fulghum Fibres, Rentech entered into a joint venture with Estonia -based pellet manufacturer Graanul Invest to develop pellet plants in Canada and the United States. In 2013, it also acquired wood processing facilities in Atikokan and Wawa, Ontario , which it is converting into of pellet factories. These facilities are contracted to supply Ontario Power Generation and Drax Power with pellets for power generation. In May 2014, Rentech acquired New England Wood Pellets, considered to be

1248-453: The area along with "lackluster updates" by BrightSource. In addition, then recent Inyo County planning policy changes would prevent large solar thermal plants being built in the county. In September 2014, BrightSource ended its upcoming California projects, withdrawing its application for a solar thermal power plant at Palen, near Riverside . Biologists, Native American groups, and advocates for Joshua Tree National Park were concerned that

1300-462: The birds' deaths were attributed to solar flux. According to a report by the Associated Press, "Ivanpah might act as a 'mega-trap' for wildlife, with the bright light of the plant attracting insects, which in turn attract insect-eating birds that fly to their death in the intensely focused light rays." Bird kill mitigation strategies were considered, including proven, environmentally safe technologies such as avian radars and LRADs to keep birds away from

1352-607: The bright light and heat of the Palen project's heliostats would prove fatal for birds. The company shifted its focus to overseas projects. In November 2014, Bright Source announced a joint venture with Shanghai Electric to build "utility scale solar thermal projects," and proposed the "construction of two 135 megawatt (MW) CSP plants as part of the Qinghai Delingha Solar Thermal Power Generation Project." In March 2016, it

1404-550: The habitat of the desert tortoise . The Ivanpah system consists of three solar thermal power plants on 3,500 acres (1,400 ha) of public land near the California–Nevada border in the Southwestern United States . Initially it was planned with 440 MW gross on 4,000 acres (1,600 ha) of land, but then downgraded by 12%. It is near Interstate 15 and north of Ivanpah, California . The facility

1456-522: The habitat of the desert tortoise. Many desert tortoises found on the site were relocated to other parts of the Mojave Desert. However, environmentalists raised concerns that relocated tortoises were more likely to die due to the stresses involved. During the trial of the plant in September 2013, thirty-four dead birds were found at the plant. Fifteen had heavily burned feathers, which staff at

1508-414: The intact, natural character of the desert floor [and] would rise to a height of roughly 459 feet [140 m]; an additional 10 to 15 feet [3.0 to 4.6 metres] above that height would consist of lighting to meet Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) requirements." The Ivanpah Solar power project was built on 6 square miles (16 km) of public land in the south central Mojave Desert. Project construction

1560-527: The intellectual property for a number of energy technologies, such as Rentech–SilvaGas Gasification Process and Fischer–Tropsch process based Rentech Process. Rentech was initially formed in 1981 by Charles Benham and Mark Bohn to develop and commercialize synthetic fuel technologies. In 1991, it incensed its Rentech Process to the Fuel Resources Development Company (Fuelco) to produce diesel fuel from landfill gas at

1612-617: The largest producer of wood pellets for the U.S. heating market. Established in 1992, New England Wood Pellet operates three wood pellet facilities, located in the U.S. Northeast, which is the largest domestic market for consumption of wood pellets for heating. Rentech entered into the nitrogen fertilizer business in 2006 when it acquired from Agrium an ammonia nitrogen fertilizer facility located in East Dubuque, Illinois . In 2011, Rentech consolidated its nitrogen fertilizer business into subsidiary company Rentech Nitrogen Partners. At

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1664-409: The mirrors could always be perpendicular to Sun's ray, based on irradiance, the intercepted solar energy flow is 2.717 MWh/m/year × 2,437,144 m = 6,621,720 MWh yearly. On May 19, 2016, a small fire was reported when misaligned mirrors reflected sunlight into a level of Unit 3 tower not designed to collect power, requiring the tower to shut down for repairs. As another of the three power-generating units

1716-478: The most recent announcement on the website was from 2017. Rentech Rentech, Inc. (stands for Renewable Energy Technology ) was a Los Angeles, California –based company that owned and operated wood fiber processing and nitrogen fertilizer manufacturing businesses. It provided wood chipping and wood pellet services through a subsidiary Fulghum Fibres, Inc. and sold nitrogen fertilizer through Rentech Nitrogen Partners, L.P. In addition, Rentech owned

1768-524: The plant each day before sunrise by burning one hour's worth of natural gas to generate steam, Ivanpah needs more than four times that much." On August 27, 2014, the State of California approved Ivanpah to increase its annual natural gas consumption from 328,000,000 cubic feet (9,300,000 m) of natural gas, as previously approved, to 525,000,000 cubic feet (14,900,000 m). In 2014, the plant burned 868 × 10 British thermal units (254 GWh) of natural gas emitting 46,084 metric tons of carbon dioxide, which

1820-444: The plant is producing just 40% of [its expected more than a million megawatt-hours of electricity each year], according to data from the U.S. Energy Department." Performance improved dramatically in the second year. CleanTechnica reported with respect to units 1 and 3 that "in 2015, PG&E customers received about 97% of Ivanpah's contracted electrons, which is a massive improvement over its first year". By 2017, due to improvements,

1872-535: The plant referred to as "streamers" because they were burned in flight by the intense radiation from the heliostat mirrors. From February through June 2014, a team of biologists monitoring the number of bird deaths reported a total of 290. In April 2014, the USFWS reported that 141 dead birds, including peregrine falcon , barn owl and yellow-rumped warbler had been collected at Ivanpah in October 2013. Forty-seven of

1924-530: The plant was meeting the contract output requirements. The steam plant was designed for 28.72% gross efficiency. The local irradiance near the area is about 7.4 kWh/m/day (annual average) for a total solar energy flow in the visible spectrum of 2.717 MWh/m yearly. One heliostat mirror is a 75.6 square feet (7.02 m) reflecting surface, giving a total of 151.2 square feet (14.05 m) per heliostat. The total plant heliostat reflecting surface results in 173,500 heliostats × 14.05 m/heliostat = 2,437,144 m. If

1976-797: The project was NRG Energy , a generating company based in Princeton, New Jersey . It contributed $ 300 million. The project also received an investment of $ 168 million from Google . However, in November 2011, Google announced that it would no longer invest in the facility due to the rapid decline of the price of photovoltaic systems . $ 90,000,000 in financing was provided through the EB-5 Investor Immigration program , managed in this case by CMB Regional Centers. The plant burns natural gas each morning to commence operation. The Wall Street Journal reported, "Instead of ramping up

2028-575: The referenced CCGT plant), all the while operating at well below its expected output. In 2015, the facility showed higher production numbers, with Q1 increases of 170% over the same time period in 2014. The facility uses three Rentech Type-D water tube boilers and three night time preservation boilers. The California Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission approved for each a stack "130 feet (40 m) high and 60 inches (1.5 m) in diameter" and consumption of 242,500 cu ft/h (6,870 m/h) of fuel. BrightSource estimated that

2080-618: The same year, Rentech Nitrogen was listed at the New York Stock Exchange. In 2012, Rentech acquired Agrifos LLC, which owns a synthetic granulated ammonium sulfate fertilizer plant in Pasadena, Texas . As of Feb. 21, 2017, Rentech posted on their website that the board has decided to idle the Wawa facility due to equipment and operational issues that would require additional unbudgeted capital investment, also stated

2132-450: The site, covering ponds to discourage waterbirds from loitering, and clearing additional land around the plant to make it less attractive and more visible to birds in flight. Some of the bird deaths occurred when the plant was in standby-mode, and the mirrors were focused above the tower. This issue was resolved by spreading the focus wider, below damaging intensity. In April 2015 The Wall Street Journal reported that "biologists working for

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2184-423: The state estimated that 3,500 birds died at Ivanpah in the span of a year, many of them burned alive while flying through a part of the solar installment where air temperatures can reach 1,000 degrees Fahrenheit [540 °C]". In late 2015, Brightsource released the results of the first full year monitoring bird and bat deaths at the Ivanpah solar plant. The company reported that during a year of study supervised by

2236-591: The top 10 greentech startups in the world in 2008. BrightSource was formed with seed capital from VantagePoint Venture Partners. It secured $ 115 million in additional corporate funding from its Series C round of financing in May ;2008, bringing the total the company has raised at that time to over $ 160 million. Investors include Google.org , BP Alternative Energy, Morgan Stanley , DBL Investors, Draper Fisher Jurvetson , Chevron Technology Ventures, Statoil Venture, and Black River. By May 2010,

2288-607: The total amount raised was $ 337 million. BrightSource Industries (Israel) Ltd., formerly named Luz II Ltd., is a wholly owned subsidiary of BrightSource Energy, Inc. Based in Israel, BrightSource Industries is responsible for solar technology development, plant design and engineering. In March 2008, BrightSource entered into a series of power purchase agreements with Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) for up to 900 MW of electricity. In February 2009, BrightSource contracted to sell power from seven solar power towers in

2340-457: The year, raising the risk of default on its Power Purchase Agreement. PG&E had a contract to receive 640 GWh/year from Units 1 and 3, while SCE was supposed to receive 336 GWh from Unit 2, at a price of about $ 200/MWh (20¢/kWh). In March 2016, PG&E agreed not to declare the plant in default for at least four months in return for an undisclosed sum from the owners. In June 2015, The Wall Street Journal reported, "15 months after starting up,

2392-403: Was already offline for scheduled maintenance, the plant was left with only one third of its installation functional. Unit 3 resumed operation on June 8, 2016. All three units were back in operation by June 20, 2016. Solar thermal electricity production in California peaked at 703 MW on that day, up from 452 MW on June 7 when two units were offline. In August 2014, Ivanpah was awarded the "Plant of

2444-494: Was confirmed that BrightSource is supplying technology to Ashalim Power Station in the Negev Desert of Israel. In September 2016, BrightSource signed a deal to sell its Ivanpah solar farm technology to a Chinese project owned by a state-run energy company. Arnold Goldman, the founder of BrightSource, died in 2017. In 2020 it was reported that the main telephone number of BrightSource was directed to voicemail and that

2496-547: Was designed to minimize impacts on the natural environment compared to some photovoltaic solar facilities because the use of heliostats does not require as much grading of the land. The facility was fenced off to keep out some terrestrial wildlife. However, birds faced the risk of collision with the heliostat mirrors or from burning in solar flux created by the mirror field. In 2012, the National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA) issued

2548-525: Was developing technology for conversion of cellulosic biomass into synthetic gas. It also cancelled its biofuels production complex project in Natchez. In 2014, Rentech sold its energy technology and equipment located at the demonstration unit in Commerce City, Colorado to Chinese Sunshine Kaidi New Energy Group . In May 2013, Rentech acquired Georgia-based Fulghum Fibres, Inc. As part of

2600-643: Was met by 2017, following sharply reduced production in the first few years of operation, particularly in the start-up year of 2014. In November 2014, the Associated Press reported that the facility was producing only "about half of its expected annual output". The California Energy Commission issued a statement blaming this on "clouds, jet contrails and weather". Performance improved in 2015 to about 650 GWh. However, NRG Energy said in its November quarterly report that Ivanpah would likely not meet its contractual obligations to provide power to PG&E during

2652-516: Was ordered, with a 123 MW Siemens SST-900 single-casing reheat turbine. Siemens also supplied instrumentation and control systems. The plants use BrightSource Energy 's "Luz Power Tower 550" (LPT 550) technology which heats the steam to 550 °C directly in the receivers. The plants have no storage . Final approval for the project was granted in October 2010. On October 27, 2010, Governor of California , Arnold Schwarzenegger , Interior Secretary Ken Salazar , and other dignitaries gathered in

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2704-489: Was temporarily halted in the spring of 2011 due to the suspected impacts on desert tortoises . Construction resumed when the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) found the project was not likely to jeopardize the endangered desert tortoise. BrightSource also installed fencing to keep wildlife out of the area. In 2010, the project was scaled back from the original 440 MW design, to avoid building on

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