Solarlite GmbH was awarded the National Energy Globe Award for Thailand for building the first commercial parabolic trough power plant using direct steam generation. The TSE 1 plant in Thailand's northern province of Kanchanaburi is particularly environmentally friendly and efficient thanks to this unique technology. It has an output of 5 MWel and was inaugurated on November 29, 2011.
"Energy that is environmentally friendly, available in adequate quantities and affordable, this is a vision we can all identify with. There are definitely designs and technologies out there that are ready to be implemented. But TSE 1 shows that Solarlite's technology can turn this vision into reality. TSE 1 was made possible through support from the Thai authorities and our local partners," said Dr. Joachim Krüger during the award ceremony on May 31.
Solarlite GmbH welcomed Ambassador Nongnuth Phetcharatana as its guest of honor, who emphasized in her address how important the TSE 1 power plant is to developing Thailand's energy policy toward renewable energies.
Drazen Miletic, Austria's trade commissioner, delivered the award to Duckwitz. Moritz von Plate reacted, "We are so proud of this award and aware that we must continue working toward our vision."
A prestigious environmental award
The Energy Globe Award is the world's most prestigious environmental award. It has been awarded every year since 1999 to projects in the 5 categories of Earth, Fire, Water, Air and Youth. More than 100 countries participate every year by submitting over 1,000 sustainable projects to Energy Globe. National Energy Globe Awards are awarded for the best submissions from countries, while Energy Globe World Awards are awarded for the best projects in the world. National Energy Globe Award winners are presented their honours in festive ceremonies around the world in cooperation with the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber and its field offices.
Efficient, environmentally-friendly energy production
Solar thermal power plants are the most sustainable form of energy production in terms of the environment, resources and availability. This technology has the advantage of achieving even greater efficiency with direct sunlight. In addition, the plants are highly flexible. They can be combined with all fossil and renewable energy sources to create baseload power. Because they are so flexible, easily integrated into existing systems and efficient, solar thermal power plants are an excellent way to make a speedy transition to renewable energies.
The water used for direct steam generation gives these plants significant advantages over those that use other heat transfer fluids, such as thermal oil or molten salt. Direct steam generation makes it possible to reach higher operating temperatures. Thus, the total investment cost can be significantly reduced, since thermal oil and related components (heat exchangers) are not needed. The technology is greener and environmentally friendlier. Although the operational design of the direct steam generation technology has been tested before in other plants, the TSE 1 parabolic power plant in Huay Krachao, Thailand is the first time that Solarlite GmbH has implemented direct steam generation for commercial use.