Concentrated solar power

<p>Concentrated solar power (CSP, also known as concentrating solar power, concentrated solar thermal) systems generate <a href="/facts/Solar_power/NpgmEbU2">solar power</a> by using mirrors or lenses to concentrate a large area of sunlight into a receiver.  <a href="/facts/Electricity/hNC8D65W">Electricity</a> is generated when the concentrated light is converted to heat (<a href="/facts/Solar_thermal_energy/VHzn41co">solar thermal energy</a>), which drives a <a href="/facts/Heat_engine/t1gq4r5d">heat engine</a> (usually a <a href="/facts/Steam_turbine/scacVXsB">steam turbine</a>) connected to an electrical <a href="/facts/Power_generator/Uo6mQQ1T">power generator</a> or powers a <a href="/facts/Thermochemical/fQS7IsoT">thermochemical</a> reaction.
</p><p>As of 2021, global installed capacity of concentrated solar power stood at 6.8 GW. As of 2023, the total was 8.1 GW, with the inclusion of three new CSP projects in construction in China and in Dubai in the UAE. The U.S.-based National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), which maintains a global database of CSP plants, counts 6.6 GW of operational capacity and another 1.5 GW under construction.
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Concentrated solar power open-in-new

Concentrated solar power