Spain and Australia are the current leading countries in solar thermal energy production. Spain already produces a large portion of their electricity though their solar thermal facilities, some built by solar thermal powerhouses such as Acciona and Abengoa — the creator of the PS10 and soon PS20. The California based solar thermal company, eSolar, and the Israeli company, Brightsource, are fast growing competitors.
Abengoa is opening the first power tower to be used for commercial energy production. eSolar is working with Southern California Edison to use solar thermal technology to generate 245 MW of power. Similarly, Brightsource has contracts with Pacific Gas and Electric Company to bring even more solar thermal generated power to California. Next section: > Technical Challenges
eSolar, Brightsource, and Abengoa have plans to beat the price of coal generated power in the near future.
Europe's first commercial concentrating PS10 solar power tower is operating near the sunny southern Spanish city of Seville. The 11 megawatt solar power tower produces electricity with 624 large movable mirrors called heliostats.
