According to BrightSource Energy’s CEO, “this is the biggest commitment ever in the history of solar”. That commitment consists of five solar power plants being constructed over the next 10 years in the Mojave Desert. These plants will produce enough energy to power over half a million California homes every year.
The company behind the deal with California Utility, BrightSource, uses mirrors to harness the sun’s rays. The sunlight is then concentrated to heat water in a boiler, and use the steam that’s generated to power a turbine that, in return, makes electricity for general consumption.
This new technology has yet to be put in place at any existing power plants, but BrightSource is planning on unveiling a prototype of it this month in Israel.
Good news for Californians, though: the first of the plants to be build in the Mojave could begin as early as 2011. Soon enough, you’ll be able to claim the name “Sunshine State” for yourselves.
Photo courtesy of: Desert Vu
