craig wood - vast solar - csp - the impact of solar thermal and the economics of thermal storage
Post on 08-Apr-2017
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Commercial in Confidence
Craig Wood CEOJuly 2016
Field5TestatJemalongStation,nearForbes,NSW,Australia,April2016
Economic Thermal Storage – the Key to Success for CSP
Commercial in Confidence
Vast Solar at a Glance
Overview• Private company founded in 2009
• Delivering solar thermal technology at a cost-point that makes large scale plants commercially viable
• Head office in Sydney, NSW with technical campus at Jemalong, Forbes, NSW
• FTE 22 at June 2016
Technology• Modular central receiver CSP with thermal energy
storage• Key differentiators:
• Compact, modular solar arrays with 27m tower and nominal power 1.6MWth
• Relatively small 3.6m2 heliostat costing <$100/m2 fully installed
• Sodium heat transfer fluid with molten salt storage
• Innovative receiver technology
Funding to Date$25M raised to date including:
• Twynam Agricultural Group • Australian Federal Government (ARENA, ASI)
• Skoda Power
Progress• 2009-11: field testing and prototyping facilities
operated for 30 months• 2012-13: 1U facility
Phase 1: commissioned Dec 2011 (300kWth 200 heliostat field, receiver and HTF cycle)Phase 2: expansion to 1.6MWth with 700 heliostats completed Dec 2012
• 2014-16: 6MWth 5-module, grid connected Pilot Plant to be commissioned by Sep 2016
• 2017 - 30MW project planning & fundraising
Commercial in Confidence 3
6MWth Grid Connected Pilot Plant
Commercial in Confidence 4
6MWth Grid Connected Pilot PlantCurrently being commissioned
Commercial in Confidence 5
Receiver
To Transmission
Grid
GeneratorHTF565°C
Receiver Tower
Module
Turbine
Feed water
Steam 538°C/100 bar
Na/Salt HX
Hot
Cold
Vast Solar Plant Design - Lower Cost, Higher EfficiencyCompetitive advantages in solar array and heat transfer systems
Steam Generator
Modular AirCooled Condenser
1. Solar Array 2. Sodium HTF 3. Molten Salt Storage 4. Conventional Steam Cycle
• 700 heliostat module• Low cost (<$100/m2) 3.6m2
heliostats• 27m towers• 2.25m2 high flux receivers
• High thermal conductivity
• 880C vaporization, 98C freezing point
• Proven technology• High heat capacity• Operating range 550 to 288C
• Proven technology• Wet or dry cooling options
Commercial in Confidence 6
Vast Solar PartnersAll organizations conducted extensive due diligence on Vast Solar
Steam turbines & steam cycle designProject Oversight
Small scale steam turbines Air cooled condensers
Lead Investor Grid connection partner
Australian Government Grants
Australian Government Financing
Project design
Commercial in Confidence
Commercialisation ProgramPhased approach progressively reduces risk and opens market opportunities
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1U RD&D
6MWth Pilot
Status: Completed
300MW Utility Scale Plant
30MW Commercial Proof
Utility ScalePower Offering
Status: Commissioning
Status: In development Commercial Distributed Power Offering
• 1 module• Full heat transfer loop
• 5 modules• Sun-to-grid proof-point
• 89 modules• Salt storage integration• Commercial plant proof-point
• 800 modules• Commercial plant proof-point
Commercial in Confidence 8
Why Should CSP be Part of the Generation Mix?
• Potential to be the lowest cost of any utility-scale generator
• Dispatchable energy => ideal replacement for fossil generators
• PV uses grid assets inefficiently with capacity factor <25% relative to CSP with 15 hours storage and capacity factor CSP ~70%
• Provides ancillary service benefits to the grid currently provided by fossil generators – inertia, frequency, etc.
• Significant local manufacturing content compared to wind and PV
• Skilled jobs during construction and ongoing operation and maintenance with a bias to regional areas
• Foundation is power generation but CSP excels in other industrial applications: process heat, solar fuels, desalination, minerals refining
Commercial in Confidence 9
The Value of Storage is Now Being Recognised
• The good work of our friends in the PV community means that policy makers now realise storage is critical
• Lazard LCSA November 2015• PHES, CAES, Li-Ion, Lead Acid, etc. considered• Costs range from $100/kWh and up by an order of magnitude• No mention of CSP molten salt
• Storage is CSP’s key differentiator and its saviour – marginal cost of storage is $20/kWh
• Substantially better than traditional storage on other metrics• 99% round trip efficiency• Grid-scale solution => best use of installed assets• Highly scalable• No degradation over a 30 year plant life• Safe and environmentally friendly - when the plant is finally decommissioned
you can sell the salt for fertiliser
Commercial in Confidence
Economic Storage Provides Dispatchability…
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Thanks to thermal storage, CSP is generated on demand when the sun sets while demand often peaks and value of electricity increases
Commercial in Confidence 11
…Which Drives LCOE Down
• First 30MW plant will have an LCOE ~12c/kWh
• Small plant over which to amortise soft costs of 30% of the overall budget
• LCOE figures assume Australian capital structures, debt and equity costs, etc. – these fall dramatically if debt:equity ratios are higher or finance costs lower
Commercial in Confidence 12
What is Stopping CSP?
• Extremely long and expensive path to commercialisation
• Small doesn’t work – projects need to be $100m and up
• No supply chain => need to develop everything
• Comparative risk – wind and PV are now low risk and debt/equity is priced accordingly
• Strong government support is required to traverse ‘the valley of death’
Commercial in Confidence
Thank You
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