The Mojave Desert Has Housed the World’s Largest Solar Thermal Power Plant for More Than a Decade. It’s Going to Close After Frying Birds to Death

The large Ivanpah Solar Power Plant in the Mojave Desert was inaugurated in 2014. After just 11 years of operation, it’s set to close soon. The decision comes as a result of its history of technical, economic, and environmental issues.

Context. Concentrated solar power was once regarded as one of the most advanced technologies for clean electricity generation. However, it’s currently facing significant challenges, especially in Nevada, where the Crescent Dunes project has already proven to be a total fiasco.

Concentrated solar power utilizes thousands of mirrors, known as “heliostats,” that track the Sun’s movement to concentrate its light onto central towers. The extreme heat generated in these towers heats water, producing steam that drives turbines connected to electric generators.

The case of Ivanpah. The Ivanpah Solar Power Plant was constructed with an investment of $1.6 billion, funded by loans from the Department of Energy and long-term contracts with major utility companies. It was the world’s largest solar thermal power plant until the opening of the Port Augusta plant in Australia in 2022.

However, 11 years after its inauguration, Ivanpah has started to shut down due to its failure to meet initial expectations and a lack of profitability. A series of technical failures and complaints from environmental groups regarding its impact on wildlife have further accelerated its closure.

Complex technology. One primary challenge has been maintaining the precise alignment of the plant’s mirrors. This technology relies on accurate solar tracking and has proven unstable and unreliable in practice, according to CNN.

The maintenance of these complex mechanisms and the management of the turbines have resulted in high operating costs. This has made concentrated solar power less competitive compared to other renewable technologies, particularly solar photovoltaic, whose prices have significantly decreased.

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A bird-killing machine. Ivanpah has not only been criticized for its technical issues but also for its environmental impact, particularly on desert wildlife. Environmental groups have highlighted the irreparable damage to the habitats of species such as the desert tortoise. They’ve also pointed to incidents where the intense rays concentrated by the plant’s mirrors have burned birds to death.

Crescent Dunes, part 2. The case of Crescent Dunes further exemplifies the challenges associated with solar thermal energy. Originally developed by the Spanish group ACS, Crescent Dunes was designed to be a groundbreaking project for energy storage using molten salts, promising continuous electricity production even during off-hours.

However, the project never delivered the expected energy output. Due to a combination of engineering and management issues, it eventually went bankrupt, becoming a multi-million-dollar failure.

In the shadow of photovoltaics. The significant drop in the cost of photovoltaic technology and its lower impact on wildlife has made concentrated solar technology increasingly outdated.

While solar panels have improved in efficiency and reduced installation and maintenance costs, solar thermal plants have struggled to remain competitive. As a result, investors and utilities are reevaluating their support for this type of project.

Image | Department of Energy

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