BizOrigin

This solar start-up is attempting to use the sun to reach for the stars. Ausra, based out of Palo Alto, Calif., has just raised $40 million from Silicon Valley VC firms. But Ausra isn’t just any solar company; the firm aims to build utility-scale solar power plants to directly compete with traditional fossil fuel plants.

Here’s how it works: “Locally manufactured solar concentrators made of steel and glass focus sunlight to boil water, generating high-pressure steam that drives conventional turbine generators. New thermal energy storage systems using pressurized water and low cost materials will provide for on-demand generation day and night.” This means that the plant can provide energy even when the sun isn’t out, a point that Morgan, the company’s chief development officer, says is key for keeping costs low during times of peak demand.

A 1 megawatt prototype of the system was built in New South Wales in 2004. Now, the firm plans to complete a 38 megawatt field by 2009. According to Morgan, a 100-500 megawatt solar plant can run at 8 cents per kilowatt hour, compared to the 12 cents per kilowatt hour cost of traditional coal plants. The company currently has plans to build a large plant in central California.

According to Ausra, if they used their technology to build a 92 sq. mile plant it would be able to power the entire United States.

Their competitors include Brightsource and the Abengoa Group, which has already built a solar thermal plant in Spain, among others.