Benchmarking between different technologies | Idae

Tower plants and parabolic trough plants are best suited to large, grid-connected projects in the range of 30-200 MW; whereas parabolic dish systems are modular and can be used for both individual applications and large projects.

The parabolic trough collector plants have the most mature technology and are therefore currently the most widely implemented. Tower power plants, which offer reduced costs and more efficient thermal storage, promise to offer highly efficient solar-only power plants. The modular nature of the parabolic dish can allow its use in small applications.

Tower power plants require demonstration of the operability and maintenance conditions of molten salt technology and the development of low-cost heliostats.

Parabolic dish systems require the development of at least one conventional motor and the development of low-cost concentrators.

In Spain, there is the Almería Solar Platform, which belongs to CIEMAT, the only research and development institution for concentrated solar projects, which has installations of all solar technologies.