The largest solar thermal power tower facility in the world, Ivanpah covers 3,500 acres of public desert.
The 377-MW plant is a three-unit power system that features 170,000 heliostats, each focusing sunlight onto a solar steam generator mounted nearly 400 feet above the desert. The recipient of $1.6 billion in Department of Energy loan guarantees, the largest of such awards to date, this plant doubles the world’s existing solar thermal capacity.
Burns & McDonnell was the owner’s engineer, providing services that included a due diligence review, design reviews, submittal reviews, construction administration, resident engineering and quality assurance auditing, along with the installation of three solar thermal power blocks.