China is planning to construct a domestically designed solar thermal power plant which is capable to power at least 30,000 households, China Daily reported Thursday.

The plant, to be Asia's first 1.5-megawatt solar thermal power station, will start construction in Beijing's suburb as soon as next month, said Wang Zhifeng, chief of the plant.

Designed by the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the plant is expected to cost 100 million yuan (14.7 million U.S. dollars) and will start operating in 2010.

Covering 13 hectares, the plant will be funded from the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Beijing municipal government and the academy.

Wang, also laboratory director for solar thermal power at the academy, said the experimental power plant would be designed and operated by 10 Chinese institutions and companies, including the academy, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Huadian Corp. and Himin Solar Group.

The plant is expected to generate up to 2.7 million kwh of electricity per year, equivalent to eliminating 2,300 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions from conventional power plants, Wang said.

Its solar tower is designed to be 100-meter tall and is surrounded by 100 heliostats composed of curved mirrors which track the sun and redirect its rays to a receiver at the top of the tower.

The receiver would convert concentrated solar thermal power from the heliostats into thermal power. Steam from the receiver outlet would be sent directly into the turbine for electricity generation.

Solar thermal power plants are typically much larger than plants made of photovoltaic solar panels that use sunlight to produce electricity.

Source: Xinhua