<html>
<head>
<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8">
</head>
<body>
<div class="BodyFragment"><font size="2"><span style="font-size:11pt;">
<div class="PlainText"><br>
> <br>
> <a href="https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=49616">https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=49616</a> <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=49616">https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=49616</a>><br>
> <br>
> Skip to sub-navigation <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=49616#page-sub-nav">https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=49616#page-sub-nav</a>> <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/">https://www.eia.gov/</a>>Search <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=49616#">https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=49616#</a>>MENU
<<a href="https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=49616#menu">https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=49616#menu</a>>Enter Search Term(s):<br>
> TODAY IN ENERGY<br>
> GLOSSARY › <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/tools/glossary/">https://www.eia.gov/tools/glossary/</a>> FAQS › <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/tools/faqs/">https://www.eia.gov/tools/faqs/</a>><br>
> HOME <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/">https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/</a>>BROWSE BY TAG <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/taglist.cfm">https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/taglist.cfm</a>>PRICES <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/prices.cfm">https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/prices.cfm</a>>ARCHIVE
<<a href="https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/archive.cfm">https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/archive.cfm</a>>ABOUT <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/about.cfm">https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/about.cfm</a>><br>
> SEPTEMBER 20, 2021<br>
> World’s longest-operating solar thermal facility is retiring most of its capacity <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=49616#">https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=49616#</a>></div>
</span></font></div>
<div class="BodyFragment"><font size="2"><span style="font-size:11pt;">
<div class="PlainText">> <br>
> Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Preliminary Electric Generator Inventory <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/electricity/data/eia860m/">https://www.eia.gov/electricity/data/eia860m/</a>>
<br>
> Note: SEGS 1 and SEGS 2 were replaced by photovoltaic systems Sunray 2 and Sunray 3, respectively, in 2017 after being decommissioned. They appear in EIA data as Sunray 2 and Sunray 3.
<br>
> The Solar Energy Generating Systems (SEGS) facility in California’s Mojave Desert retired five of its solar plants (SEGS 3 through 7) in July 2021 and plans to retire a sixth (SEGS 8) in September 2021, based on information submitted to EIA and published
in our Preliminary Electric Generator Inventory <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/electricity/data/eia860m/">https://www.eia.gov/electricity/data/eia860m/</a>>. After SEGS 8 is retired, only one solar thermal unit at SEGS will remain operating (SEGS 9). SEGS,
which began operating in 1984, is the world’s longest-operating solar thermal power facility.
<br>
> Solar thermal power plants <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/solar/solar-thermal-power-plants.php#:~:text=Solar%20thermal%20power%2Felectric%20generation,heat%20needed%20to%20generate%20electricity.&text=The%20steam%20is%20converted%20into,a%20generator%20to%20produce%20electricity.">https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/solar/solar-thermal-power-plants.php#:~:text=Solar%20thermal%20power%2Felectric%20generation,heat%20needed%20to%20generate%20electricity.&text=The%20steam%20is%20converted%20into,a%20generator%20to%20produce%20electricity.</a>>
use mirrors to focus sunlight onto a receiver, which absorbs and converts the sunlight into thermal energy (heat). The heat is used to drive a turbine, which produces electricity. The SEGS units are parabolic trough <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/solar/solar-thermal-power-plants.php">https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/solar/solar-thermal-power-plants.php</a>>
concentrating solar thermal power (CSP) systems, meaning that parabolic (u-shaped) mirrors capture and concentrate sunlight to heat synthetic oil in a central tube, which then boils water to create steam. The steam drives the turbine, generating electricity.
<br>
> The 356-megawatt (MW) SEGS facility was originally made up of nine solar thermal plants. SEGS 1 and 2 were retired in 2015 and replaced with two solar photovoltaic (PV) farms, Sunray 2 and Sunray 3. SEGS 3 through 7 (each with 36 MW of capacity) came online
from 1986 to 1988. SEGS 8 and 9 (each with 88 MW of capacity) came online in 1989 and 1990, respectively.
<br>
> Solar thermal plants account for a relatively small share of utility-scale U.S. solar electric generating capacity. As of June 2021, the United States had about 52,600 MW of utility-scale solar capacity. Of that total, 3.3% was solar thermal; the remaining
96.7% was utility-scale solar PV. <br>
> Although solar capacity in the United States is increasing rapidly, most of the capacity additions in recent years have been solar PV. About 42,000 MW of utility-scale PV capacity was added to the U.S. power grid between 2015 and June 2021; no additional
solar thermal capacity has been added since the Crescent Dunes <<a href="https://www.power-technology.com/projects/crescent-dunes-solar-energy-project-nevada/">https://www.power-technology.com/projects/crescent-dunes-solar-energy-project-nevada/</a>> plant
came online in 2015. <br>
> Based on data <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/electricity/data/eia860m/">https://www.eia.gov/electricity/data/eia860m/</a>> that developers and power plant owners have reported to EIA, one utility-scale solar thermal plant is planned to come online in the next
five years in the United States: Arizona’s 200-MW La Paz Solar Tower <<a href="https://www.curriebrown.com/en/projects/la-paz-solar-tower/">https://www.curriebrown.com/en/projects/la-paz-solar-tower/</a>>. According to trade press and announced projects, several
CSP projects are planned or are in development in other countries. <br>
> Principal contributor: Singfoong “Cindy” Cheah<br>
> Tags: generation <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/index.cfm?tg=generation">https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/index.cfm?tg=generation</a>>, electricity <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/index.cfm?tg=electricity">https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/index.cfm?tg=electricity</a>>, retirements
<<a href="https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/index.cfm?tg=retirements">https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/index.cfm?tg=retirements</a>>, power plants <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/index.cfm?tg=power%20plants">https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/index.cfm?tg=power%20plants</a>>, solar
<<a href="https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/index.cfm?tg=solar">https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/index.cfm?tg=solar</a>><br>
> Email<br>
> <<a href="mailto:?subject=Today%20in%20Energy:%20World%E2%80%99s%20longest-operating%20solar%20thermal%20facility%20is%20retiring%20most%20of%20its%20capacity&body=You%20can%20find%20the%20web%20page%20on%20the%20Energy%20Information%20Administration's%20web%20site:%20http://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.cfm?id=49616">mailto:?subject=Today%20in%20Energy:%20World%E2%80%99s%20longest-operating%20solar%20thermal%20facility%20is%20retiring%20most%20of%20its%20capacity&body=You%20can%20find%20the%20web%20page%20on%20the%20Energy%20Information%20Administration's%20web%20site:%20http://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.cfm?id=49616</a>>Share<br>
> <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=49616#">https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=49616#</a>>Print<br>
> <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=49616#">https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=49616#</a>><br>
> <br>
> Email Updates <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/tools/emailupdates/">https://www.eia.gov/tools/emailupdates/</a>><br>
> RSS Feeds <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/tools/rssfeeds/">https://www.eia.gov/tools/rssfeeds/</a>><br>
> Facebook <<a href="http://facebook.com/eiagov/">http://facebook.com/eiagov/</a>><br>
> Twitter <<a href="http://twitter.com/eiagov/">http://twitter.com/eiagov/</a>><br>
> YouTube <<a href="http://youtube.com/eiagov/">http://youtube.com/eiagov/</a>><br>
> Add us to your site <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/outreach.cfm">https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/outreach.cfm</a>><br>
> Have a question, comment, or suggestion for a future article? Send your feedback to todayinenergy@eia.gov <<a href="mailto:todayinenergy@eia.gov">mailto:todayinenergy@eia.gov</a>><br>
> Archive<br>
> 2021<br>
> September<br>
> <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/archive.cfm?my=Sep2021">https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/archive.cfm?my=Sep2021</a>>August<br>
> <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/archive.cfm?my=Aug2021">https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/archive.cfm?my=Aug2021</a>>July<br>
> <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/archive.cfm?my=Jul2021">https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/archive.cfm?my=Jul2021</a>>June<br>
> <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/archive.cfm?my=Jun2021">https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/archive.cfm?my=Jun2021</a>>May<br>
> <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/archive.cfm?my=May2021">https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/archive.cfm?my=May2021</a>>April<br>
> <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/archive.cfm?my=Apr2021">https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/archive.cfm?my=Apr2021</a>>March<br>
> <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/archive.cfm?my=Mar2021">https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/archive.cfm?my=Mar2021</a>>February<br>
> <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/archive.cfm?my=Feb2021">https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/archive.cfm?my=Feb2021</a>>January<br>
> <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/archive.cfm?my=Jan2021">https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/archive.cfm?my=Jan2021</a>><br>
> 2020<br>
> 2019<br>
> 2018<br>
> 2017<br>
> 2016<br>
> 2015<br>
> 2014<br>
> 2013<br>
> 2012<br>
> 2011<br>
> All Articles <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/archive.cfm?my=all">https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/archive.cfm?my=all</a>><br>
> About EIA <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/about/">https://www.eia.gov/about/</a>> Open Data <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/beta/api/">https://www.eia.gov/beta/api/</a>> Press Room <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/pressroom/">https://www.eia.gov/pressroom/</a>>
Careers <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/about/careers/">https://www.eia.gov/about/careers/</a>> Contact Us <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/about/contact/">https://www.eia.gov/about/contact/</a>><br>
> U.S. Energy Information Administration<br>
> 1000 Independence Ave., SW <br>
> Washington, DC 20585<br>
> Sources & Uses<br>
> Petroleum <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/petroleum/">https://www.eia.gov/petroleum/</a>><br>
> Coal <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/coal/">https://www.eia.gov/coal/</a>><br>
> Natural Gas <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/naturalgas/">https://www.eia.gov/naturalgas/</a>><br>
> Renewable <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/renewable/">https://www.eia.gov/renewable/</a>><br>
> Nuclear <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/nuclear/">https://www.eia.gov/nuclear/</a>><br>
> Electricity <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/electricity/">https://www.eia.gov/electricity/</a>><br>
> Consumption <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/consumption/">https://www.eia.gov/consumption/</a>><br>
> Total Energy <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/totalenergy/">https://www.eia.gov/totalenergy/</a>><br>
> Topics<br>
> Analysis & Projections <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/analysis/">https://www.eia.gov/analysis/</a>><br>
> Environment <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/environment">https://www.eia.gov/environment</a>><br>
> Markets & Finance <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/finance/">https://www.eia.gov/finance/</a>><br>
> Today in Energy <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/">https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/</a>><br>
> <br>
> Geography<br>
> States <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/beta/states/">https://www.eia.gov/beta/states/</a>><br>
> Countries <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/countries/">https://www.eia.gov/countries/</a>><br>
> Maps <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/maps/">https://www.eia.gov/maps/</a>><br>
> Tools<br>
> A-Z Index <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/tools/a-z/">https://www.eia.gov/tools/a-z/</a>><br>
> All Reports & Publications <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/reports/">https://www.eia.gov/reports/</a>><br>
> Data Tools, Apps, and Maps <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/tools/">https://www.eia.gov/tools/</a>><br>
> EIA Survey Forms <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/survey/">https://www.eia.gov/survey/</a>><br>
> EIA Beta <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/beta/">https://www.eia.gov/beta/</a>><br>
> Policies<br>
> Privacy/Security <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/about/privacy_security_policy.php">https://www.eia.gov/about/privacy_security_policy.php</a>><br>
> Copyright & Reuse <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/about/copyrights_reuse.php">https://www.eia.gov/about/copyrights_reuse.php</a>><br>
> Accessibility <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/about/accessibility.php">https://www.eia.gov/about/accessibility.php</a>><br>
> Information Quality <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/about/information_quality_guidelines.php">https://www.eia.gov/about/information_quality_guidelines.php</a>><br>
> Related Sites<br>
> U.S. Department of Energy <<a href="https://www.energy.gov/">https://www.energy.gov/</a>><br>
> USA.gov <<a href="https://www.usa.gov/">https://www.usa.gov/</a>><br>
> Stay Connected<br>
> Facebook <<a href="http://facebook.com/eiagov/">http://facebook.com/eiagov/</a>><br>
> Twitter <<a href="http://twitter.com/eiagov/">http://twitter.com/eiagov/</a>><br>
> Youtube <<a href="http://youtube.com/eiagov/">http://youtube.com/eiagov/</a>><br>
> Flickr <<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/eiagov/">https://www.flickr.com/photos/eiagov/</a>><br>
> LinkedIn <<a href="http://linkedin.com/company/u-s-energy-information-administration">http://linkedin.com/company/u-s-energy-information-administration</a>><br>
> Email Updates <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/tools/emailupdates/">https://www.eia.gov/tools/emailupdates/</a>><br>
> RSS Feeds <<a href="https://www.eia.gov/tools/rssfeeds/">https://www.eia.gov/tools/rssfeeds/</a>><br>
</div>
</span></font></div>
</body>
</html>