【New Energy Development】Asia’s first 24/7 molten salt mirror tower solar thermal power plant began generating electricity in Dunhuang, Gansu
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The world’s third and Asia’s first molten salt tower solar thermal power plant capable of 24/7 power generation began generating electricity on the night of December 26 in Dunhuang, Gansu. The first all-weather molten salt tower solar thermal power plant in Asia looks spectacular in aerial winter footage
This power plant relies 100% on solar energy and does not require any additional fuel sources; it addresses the issue of previous renewable energy systems’ excessive dependence on conditions such as wind and sunlight. Its annual power generation capacity is sufficient to meet the electricity needs of 30,000 households, and it causes no environmental pollution.
This 24/7 operating molten salt tower solar thermal power plant features a single-side heliostat reflector area of 115 square meters, with the total reflector area of the entire solar field reaching 175,000 square meters.
The 10-megawatt molten salt tower solar thermal power plant, which is now in the final stages of construction, represents only the capacity of the first phase of this project. The second phase plans to build another molten salt tower solar thermal power plant with a capacity of 100 megawatts, bringing the total capacity of the project to 110 megawatts.
The technical principle of this power generation system is that a heat absorber is installed at the top of the molten salt heat absorption tower; this absorber is used to capture solar energy reflected by the light field, thereby heating the heat transfer fluid, molten salt, and storing light energy in this way.
Molten salt tower power generation stores solar energy in molten salt, enabling electricity production at night or on cloudy days, thus overcoming the drawback of traditional wind power, which requires wind to generate electricity, and photovoltaic systems, which require sunlight.
It is estimated that once the photovoltaic projects in Dunhuang City, with a total installed capacity of 1,110 megawatts, are completed, they will be able to generate 1.87 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity per year. At the current feed-in tariff of 0.9 yuan per kilowatt-hour, annual sales revenue of nearly 1.7 billion yuan can be generated, along with tax revenues of around 400 million yuan.
The northwestern region is highly suitable for clean energy, with vast areas and a sparse population.