ABB investment sharpens solar focus

The power and automation technology group ABB has agreed to buy a 35% stake in Novatec Solar (formerly Novatec Biosol), an innovative concentrated solar power (CSP) technology company based in Karlsruhe, Germany.

The investment includes an option to acquire 100% of Novatec Solar and an agreement to cooperate on future solar power plant projects. The companies agreed not to disclose financial details of the transaction.

CSP is a fast-growing sector of the renewable energy market and this investment complements ABB’s existing activities in power plant automation, electrification and long-distance electricity transmission.

Novatec Solar is a leading provider of Linear Fresnel CSP technology using flat mirrors to concentrate the sun’s energy onto a receiver to produce steam. The solar-produced steam reduces the need for fossil fuels to generate electricity in existing or new power stations, and also in process plants and other industrial applications where heat is required. Compared with other CSP technologies, Novatec Solar’s technology is highly competitive due to its use of flat glass and common steel in low-lying mirror modules that are easy to assemble and install.

“This investment brings us closer to solar power based on CSP technology and supports ABB’s focus on renewable energies, complementing our own power generation offering,” said Peter Leupp, head of ABB’s Power Systems division. “The technology’s simplicity, financial viability as well as minimal water and land requirements are factors that make it particularly attractive in emerging markets, where ABB has a strong position.”

Novatec Solar’s patented Linear Fresnel technology has been demonstrated with a 1.4 MW plant connected to the Spanish electricity grid since March 2009. The company is currently constructing the world's first commercial 30 MW Linear Fresnel power plant, also in Spain, and recently won an order to retrofit a solar field to a 2000 MW coal-fired power plant in Australia. Novatec Solar has developed a highly automated manufacturing process and solar field cleaning system.