The Extresol Solar Power Station is a 150
megawatt
The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of 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 quantify the rate of energy transfer. The watt is named after Jame ...
(MW) commercial
concentrated solar thermal power plant, located in
Torre de Miguel Sesmero in the
province of Badajoz
The province of Badajoz () is a province of western Spain located in the autonomous community of Extremadura. It was formed in 1833. It is bordered by the provinces of Cáceres in the north, Toledo, Ciudad Real in the east, Córdoba in the sout ...
,
Extremadura
Extremadura (; ext, Estremaúra; pt, Estremadura; Fala: ''Extremaúra'') is an autonomous community of Spain. Its capital city is Mérida, and its largest city is Badajoz. Located in the central-western part of the Iberian Peninsula, ...
,
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' ( Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, ...
.
The power station consists of three different systems, Extresol 1,
[(]NREL
The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in the US specializes in the research and development of renewable energy, energy efficiency, energy systems integration, and sustainable transportation. NREL is a federally funded research and ...
Extresol-1
/ref> Extresol 2[(NREL]
Extresol-2
/ref> and Extresol 3,[(NREL]
Extresol-3
/ref> of 50 MW each, due to the power limitation of 50 MW per plant established by the Spanish legislation. Extresol uses parabolic trough
A parabolic trough is a type of solar thermal collector that is straight in one dimension and curved as a parabola in the other two, lined with a polished metal mirror. The sunlight which enters the mirror parallel to its plane of symmetry is fo ...
and has a thermal energy storage
Thermal energy storage (TES) is achieved with widely different technologies. Depending on the specific technology, it allows excess thermal energy to be stored and used hours, days, months later, at scales ranging from the individual process, ...
system, which absorbs part of the heat produced in the solar field during the day and stores it in molten salts. Extresol 1 cost around €300 million and was inaugurated on 25 February 2009. The name of the power station, Extresol, is based on the name of the autonomous community, Extremadura, and the Spanish word for "Sun".
See also
*List of solar thermal power stations
This is a list of the largest facilities generating electricity through the use of solar thermal power, specifically concentrated solar power.
Operational
Under construction
Announced
Cancelled
Decommissioned
* Eurelios p ...
*List of energy storage projects
This is a list of energy storage power plants worldwide, other than pumped hydro storage.
Many individual energy storage plants augment electrical grids by capturing excess electrical energy during periods of low demand and storing it in o ...
*Renewable energy in the European Union
Renewable energy plays an important and growing role in the energy system of the European Union. The Europe 2020 strategy included a target of reaching 20% of gross final energy consumption from renewable sources by 2020, and at least 32% by 203 ...
*Sener Aeronáutica
Sener Aeronáutica is the aerospace arm of the Spanish company Grupo SENER. Since its formation in 1956, the group has developed expertise a number of fields including Marine, Power Systems, and Space. The group has links with a number of Sp ...
* Solar power in Spain
*Solar thermal energy
Solar thermal energy (STE) is a form of energy and a technology for harnessing solar energy to generate thermal energy for use in industry, and in the residential and commercial sectors.
Solar thermal collectors are classified by the United ...
*Wind power in Spain
Spain is one of the countries with the largest wind power capacity installed, with over 27 GW in 2020.
History
Spain was an early leader in development of wind power, ranking second after Germany by installed capacity until 2006, when it was ...
References
{{Reflist
Solar power stations in Spain
Solar thermal energy
Energy in Extremadura