The JOAN1 CSP plant will also include a back-up fossil-fuel boiler to guarantee 24-hour dispatchable electric power. The project is expected to enter operation in 2013 and could be the largest CSP project in the world using direct solar steam generation.

The CSP plant will use on Ausra’s Compact Linear Fresnel Reflector technology to power the plant’s solar steam cycle and generate up to 100 MW of electricity. JOAN1 will use dry cooling to conserve water.

Ausra plans to install an advanced manufacturing facility in Jordan in order to supply the CSP plant with its solar steam boilers. The CSP project is scheduled for financial close in the fourth quarter of 2010, with construction beginning in early 2011.

Ausra’s Compact Linear Fresnel Reflector (CLFR) solar steam systems are designed for existing fossil-fired plants, new standalone solar and solar/fossil hybrid plants, and a diverse range of industrial customers.