Khi Solar One (KSO) is a

solar power tower A solar power tower, also known as 'central tower' power plant or 'heliostat' power plant, is a type of solar furnace using a tower to receive focused sunlight. It uses an array of flat, movable mirrors (called heliostats) to focus the sun's ra ...

solar thermal Solar thermal energy (STE) is a form of energy and a technology for harnessing solar energy to generate thermal energy for use in Industrial sector, industry, and in the residential and commercial sectors. Solar thermal collectors are classified ...

power plant, located in the

Northern Cape The Northern Cape ( ; ; ) is the largest and most sparsely populated Provinces of South Africa, province of South Africa. It was created in 1994 when the Cape Province was split up. Its capital is Kimberley, South Africa, Kimberley. It includes ...

Region of

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

. Khi Solar One is 50

megawatt The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of Power (physics), power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantification (science), quantify the rate of Work ...

s (MW), and is the first solar tower plant in Africa. It covers an area of . Abengoa claim it is the first thermal solar tower plant in Africa and the first tower plant to achieve 24 hours of operation with solar energy only, but that thanks to the decline in power demand at night, since full power storage lasts only 2 hours. The KSO is an evolution of the

PS10 The Solucar Complex is a complex in Sanlúcar la Mayor, Spain, used primarily for solar power generation. The complex includes: * PS10 Solar Power Plant * PS20 Solar Power Plant * Solnova Solar Power Station Planning The first two power pla ...

and

PS20 The Solucar Complex is a complex in Sanlúcar la Mayor, Spain, used primarily for solar power generation. The complex includes: * PS10 Solar Power Plant * PS20 Solar Power Plant * Solnova Solar Power Station Planning The first two power pl ...

projects, operating since 2007 and 2009 respectively in Spain. KSO solar field is made of more than 4,000 heliostats, totaling up to of mirror surface, focusing solar energy on a boiler located on top a centralized tower. KSO uses a superheated steam cycle that should be able to reach a maximum

operating temperature An operating temperature is the allowable temperature range of the local ambient environment at which an electrical or mechanical device operates. The device will operate effectively within a specified temperature range which varies based on the de ...

of 530 °C. Accumulated saturated steam is also used to provide up to two hours of thermal storage at the plant. KSO condenser is cooled with a dry cooling system, a natural draft condenser that uses towers to distribute air across fin blades in order to dissipate heat. The project has been developed by the Spanish company Abengoa, and the project was financed with help from Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) and community group, Khi Community Trust.

Accident

In November 2014, a crane collapse on site during construction killed two and injured seven. The accident was largely responsible for the project commencing commercial operation fourteen months later than scheduled.

Gallery

File:Khi Solar One.jpg, Khi Solar One, 50 MW, 180 GWh, solar power tower thermal plant File:KhiSolarOneBirdView.jpg, high oblique aerial photograph of Khi Solar One (Picture October 2016) File:Khi Solar One mirror detail.jpg, Detail of mirrors File:View from a plane Upington Airport to KhiSolarOne.jpg, Khi Solar One tower as seen from a plane just before landing at Upington Airport

Abengoa Bankruptcy

In November 2015, Abengoa started insolvency proceedings. Khi Solar One is one of the assets which Abengoa could be looking to sell. On 27 December 2016, Abengoa received a “''Provisional Acceptance Certificate''”, officially handing the plant to its owner Khi Solar One Pty Ltd. Abengoa has a 51% stake, Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) has a 29% stake and Khi Community Trust has a 20% stake in that society. Abengoa will take on the operation and maintenance of the plant. The plant output is sold to grid operator

Eskom Eskom Hld SOC Ltd or Eskom is a South African electricity public utility. Eskom was established in 1923 as the Electricity Supply Commission (ESCOM) (). Eskom represents South Africa in the Southern African Power Pool. The utility is the larg ...

under a 20-year PPA (Power Purchase Agreement). Khi Solar One demonstrated in early 2016, up to 24 consecutive hours of operation.

References

{{Power in South Africa , state=expanded Solar thermal energy Solar power stations in South Africa Economy of the Northern Cape Dawid Kruiper Local Municipality

Accident

Gallery

Abengoa Bankruptcy

See also

References