CSP World

BrightSource Energy and Abengoa, the consortium promoting the Palen SEGS concentrated solar power plant are gaining some time as California Energy Commission has approved a delay for the decision of the project.

A couple of weeks ago, the California Energy Commission staff in charge of the project review for the Palen CSP plant issued the 'Presiding Member's Proposed Decision', a 1,021 pages document to propose the denial of permits to build the Palen CSP plant, a 500 MW tower type project to be built in California. The proposed decision was based on "significant unmitigable impacts to cultural and visual resources", mostly focused in the effect of the solar flux on avian species.

A committee conference was scheduled on January 7, 2014 in Sacramento, but Scott Galati, the counsel to Palen Solar Holdings, filed a request for delay in the schedule on December, 23. The same day, Kenneth Celli, Hearing Advisor responded granting the delay in the schedule.

The consortium will gather data from Ivanpah, a similar CSP plant which has begun operation recently.

Palen's request reads:

Palen Solar Holdings, LLC (PSH), the owner of the Palen Solar Electric Generating System (PSEGS) and Petitioner in the proceeding referenced above, hereby files this Request For Delay in the Schedule in the current amendment proceedings. A primary purpose of this request is to allow PSH to gather the data identified in the Presiding Member’s Proposed Decision (PMPD) relating to potential impacts to avian species. At page 8-2 of the PMPD, the Committee stated,

…we conclude, in the BIOLOGICAL RESOURCES section of this Decision, that currently there is insufficient scientifically deduced information about actual avian impacts from power tower solar flux.

The Committee further stated at page 4.2-106 of the PMPD,

Research and experience gained from other projects may point to mitigation measures that could reduce PSEGS’ avian mortality to a level that is more consistent with solar trough and PV. We are willing to revisit this determination if and when Petitioner is able to submit additional information that addresses this issue.

As the Committee is aware, avian data is currently being gathered at the Ivanpah project (ISEGS). PSH believes that this data, coupled with avian data from projects employing other solar technologies, will be important for the Committee to consider before ultimately reaching a decision on the PSEGS Amendment. PSH believes that a delay in the schedule to Spring 2014 is prudent to relieve the Staff and parties from expending resources while such data is gathered.

PSH would also welcome the opportunity to provide further information to expand upon the benefits of the project for California. PSH asks the Commission to allow the submission of any new data in this regard.

PSH therefore requests the Committee to cancel the PMPD Conference scheduled for January 7, 2014, or to change the conference to one focused on the type of additional data to be submitted to the Committee, and not place the PMPD on the Commission Business agenda for a full vote of the Commission. In order to keep the Committee apprised, PSH proposes the filing of monthly status reports beginning January 2, 2014 in which PSH will update the Committee on its progress and when it plans to move to re-open the evidentiary record to present the data identified in the PMPD.

The Palen SEGS Project

In December 2010, the Energy Commission approved the 500 MW Palen Solar Power Project, a solar thermal power project using parabolic trough technology. In December 2012, the new project owner, Palen Solar Holdings, LLC filed an amendment with the commission requesting to change the technology to solar power tower.

The applicant for the amended project now known as the Palen Solar Electric Generating System is Palen Solar Holdings, LLC, a joint venture of BrightSource Energy, Inc. and Abengoa.

The amendment proposal consists of two 250 -MW solar towers and 170,000 heliostats. Heliostats are elevated mirrors used to focus the sun's rays on a solar receiver that produces steam to generate electricity. The solar receiver would be located atop a 750-foot-tall power tower near the center of each solar field.

The Palen project would be located about 10 miles east of Desert Center, halfway between Indio and Blythe, in eastern Riverside County. It is located on 3,794 acres of public land managed by the BLM which is separately reviewing the project.