New Consortium to Drive Hybrid Concentrating Solar Power

In a landmark event for the energy industry, four major industry players have joined forces to form the Hybrid Energy Consortium (“HEC”), focused on the design of next generation utility-scale commercial integrated solar combined cycle (“ISCC”) power plants.

The founding members of the consortium are QGEN of the USA, FLABEG Group and Schlaich Bergermann und Partner Sohne GmbH, both of Germany and JGC Corporation of Japan – all known as innovators in their respective specialties in the energy industry.

HEC’s mission will be to accelerate the design and development of ISCC plants. HEC’s ISCC plants start by integrating state-of-the-art concentrating solar power (CSP) technologies into conventional gas- and coal-fired plant designs to generate electricity and desalinate water.

As a next step, HEC will test new solar field designs and components in ISCC configurations in its own technology demonstration plants to be located in North Africa and North America. Upon the successful development of its commercial designs, HEC plans to provide its design, procurement and construction services to project developers around the world.

ISCC plants will accelerate the integration of solar energy into the electricity generation mix. In ISCC plants solar energy is used as a complement to fossil fuels leveraging the gas- or coal-fired plant infrastructure and eliminating the need for the government subsidies currently being granted to stand-alone concentrating solar or photovoltaic (PV) power plants.

FLABEG, founded in 1882, is an expert in all glass finishing processes. FLABEG’s proprietary know-how in bending and coating glass provides its customers unsurpassable product solutions and competitive advantages. The insatiable appetite for innovation with further product development made FLABEG a pioneer in the manufacture of high precision solar mirrors used in concentrating solar power (CSP) plants for the generation of electricity.

FLABEG is headquartered in Nuremberg, Germany, and has a global production footprint of 11 manufacturing facilities across Europe, the Americas and Asia. In addition to Solar Mirrors, FLABEG’s other business lines include Automotive Mirrors and Technical Glass.

Since the company’s establishment in 1928, JGC Corporation has left its mark on numerous projects in the field of hydrocarbons the world over. Many have been major, state-sponsored projects carried out in Asia, Africa, South America, Eastern Europe and the Middle East.

The company’s highly advanced engineering technologies and excellent project management have led repeatedly to the successful completion of these large-scale projects. In short, as a leading global engineering company, JGC has the accumulated experience gained from over 20,000 projects performed in approximately 70 countries. It therefore comes as no surprise that JGC is recognized internationally as a first-class engineering company with superior technological capabilities.

In the meantime, JGC maximizes its remarkable project execution capabilities, accumulated engineering and construction expertise, and financing coordination, the area of project development including renewable and power generation as well as water business, new types of fuels is now a focus of intense interest as a new domain for JGC.

QGEN is a U.S.-based technology-driven global developer, owner and operator of utility-scale power generation and water desalination projects. QGEN’s hybrid plant designs integrate state-of-the-art renewable energy technologies into conventional fossil fuel power generation plant designs, with a focus on integrated solar combined cycle plants. QGEN’s track record spans projects in the Middle East, North Africa and Asia.

Schlaich Bergermann & Partner, based in Stuttgart, Germany, are world-renowned independent consulting civil and structural engineers. This consultancy strives to design sophisticated engineering structures ranging from wide-span lightweight roofs, a diversity of bridges and slender towers to innovative solar energy power plants.

Their ambitions are efficiency, beauty and ecology. For the sake of holistic solutions they seek the collaboration with architects and engineers from all fields of expertise who share their goals.

www.sbp.de

www.qgenenergy.com

www.flabeg.com