Siemens Aims to Lead Global Solar Power Market
Siemens Energy, a subsidiary of global engineering company Siemens AG, is going to acquire a 28% stake in the Italian solar company Archimede Solar Energy SpA. Archimede is currently the only manufacturer of solar receiver tubes that use, under license from ENEA, molten salt as the heat-transfer fluid for application in parabolic-trough power plants.
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Thermodynamic solar power plants using molten salts produce energy without either emissions or pollution, and they do not make use of any toxic or dangerous materials. In particular, the vector fluid is a common fertilizer already used widely in agriculture.
The technology of the high-temperature thermodynamic solar power is modular and can meet needs for creating large autonomous solar power plants, for supplementing the thermoelectric plants currently in operation. Siemens is a market leader for solar-powered steam turbines and generators for use in power plants.
“By acquiring a stake in Archimede Solar Energy Siemens is underlining its intention to become the leading provider of solutions for solar thermal power plants,“ said René Umlauft, CEO of the Siemens Renewable Energy Division. “In the upcoming years the market for solar thermal power plants will grow at a rapid pace and the interest of our traditional customers in the energy sector in this promising future-oriented technology will increase significantly.”
The company plans to combine its technology with that of Archimede to improve the operational efficiency of plants and produce solar power cost effectively. “We chose Siemens Energy as our Partner to enable us to better match the tremendous growth we are expecting in the solar thermal power sector worldwide,” said Gianluigi Angelantoni, President of Archimede Solar Energy. “Construction of a new factory for the production of solar receivers, which is scheduled to be up and running in 2010, will begin before the end of this year.”
Image courtesy of eyesplash Mikul on Flickr under Creative Commons
