California set for world's biggest solar thermal plant

Later this year, on 4,000 acres near the California-Nevada border, the world's biggest solar thermal plant - called Ivanpah - will turn on. Once all three of the units, each with a 500 ft (150 m) solar tower, is complete, the plant's 300,000 sun-tracking mirrors will produce 392 megawatts of electricity, enough to power 140,000 homes. Ivanpah will double the global capacity of solar thermal in a single step.

Unlike conventional rooftop photovoltaic panels, which convert sunlight directly into electricity, the California plant will capture heat, which will be converted to steam to create electricity. Crucially, this allows energy to be stored for use when demand exists. Ivanpah's solar thermal technology also uses 95% less water than competing wet-cooled thermal solar plants, using air instead of water to condense steam.

Electricity from Ivanpah will avoid millions of tons of carbon dioxide and other air pollutants – the equivalent of taking 70,000 cars off the road.  The project will create more than 2,100 jobs for construction workers and support staff and 86 jobs for operations and maintenance employees in addition to hundreds of millions of dollars in local and state taxes. The $2.2 billion project represents a durable model for far-reaching employment and economic benefit both locally and nationally.