A 50MW CSPP for Jordan

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Electricity generation

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Jordans demand curve over a day closely matches the electricity production of the proposed plant.

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technologies has focused on small and experimental plants [46].Electricity harnessed via RE sources accounted only for less than 2%of the total electricity generated in 2005 [7,8]. Thus, the dominantrole of steam turbines and diesel fuel-red gas turbines is leading toincreased dependence on imported oil [9]. According to JordansEnergy Master Plan [10], the share of REmust be increased. The aimis to reach a 3% share of Jordans primary energy consumption by

potential to be the best systems for electricity production in Jordan.This research carried out by the Jordanian Government in

cooperationwith Lahmeyer International focuses on the potentialof CSPP technology in Jordan and shows the next steps for thedevelopment of the rst CSPP in the country. For this purpose,analysis of the direct solar irradiation over Jordan was performed employing satellite-based solar irradiation data in order toidentify the Jordanian sites which are best situated for efcientelectricity generation using concentrated solar energy, and

Contents lists availab

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Journal of Cleaner Production 17 (2009) 625635* Corresponding author. Tel.: 962 777499430; fax: 962 32250431.Nearly all the generated electricity in Jordan is produced frompower plants that use fossil fuels. The most popular fuels are heavyfuel oil and diesel fuels. However, this option is not very attractivesince Jordans spending on petroleum is more than 50% of its exportearnings [2]. Therefore, switching to renewable energy (RE) sourcesfor electricity generation is of a vital importance since it serves asan optimal solution for energy and environmental issues [3].

The Jordanian experience with electricity generation using RE

wind, and hydro-power systems in addition to fossil fuel powerplants. Based on cost-to-benet ratios, results show that solarenergy is considered to be the best system for electric powergeneration. Akash et al. [12] used analytical hierarchy process toperform a comparison between different electric power productionoptions in Jordan. The systemswhich were considered in additionto fossil fuel power plants were nuclear, solar, wind, and hydro-power. Results show that solar electric power plants have the1. Introduction

Unlike other countries of the Miproducing country. Its domestic recolimited and dont satisfy the demandeconomic growth. Thus, the countrcontinue to do so in the near fucombustion of imported fossil fuelsenergy demand [1].E-mail address: [email protected] (E.S. Hraysh

0959-6526/$ see front matter 2008 Elsevier Ltd.doi:10.1016/j.jclepro.2008.11.002Africa (MENA) region. 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

ast, Jordan is a non-oille energy resources arereasing population andesent relies and willalmost solely on ther to satisfy its national

the year 2015. To achieve this goal an investment of 450million US$will be placed by the Jordanian Government represented by theMinistry of Energy and Mineral Resources (MEMR). With an annualgrowth rate of 4%, an electricity consumption of about 18 TWh isprojected for 2015.

Many Jordanian authors considered different RE options forelectricity generation using various methodologies. Mamlook et al.[11] utilized neuro-fuzzy programming to perform an evaluation ofelectric power generation options for Jordan using nuclear, solar,Jordan 50 MW CSPP is highly recommended not only in Jordan, but also in many other countries, which havesimilar political and economical conditions such as those countries located in the Middle East and NorthFeasibility analysis Combination of these factors creates a very favorable situation. Therefore, establishment of the proposedA 50 MW concentrating solar power pla

Mohammed S. Al-Soud, Eyad S. Hrayshat*

Electrical Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Tala Technical University, P

a r t i c l e i n f o

Article history:Received 4 October 2007Received in revised form11 October 2008Accepted 3 November 2008Available online 16 December 2008

Keywords:Concentrating solar power plant

a b s t r a c t

The potential of concentrasteps for development ofa 50 MW CSPP for electricibeen performed. Moreoversolar irradiation data wasolar irradiation data, it wsouthern locations of theseeking for independent e

Journal of Clea

journal homepage: wwwat).

All rights reserved.t for Jordan

ox 66, Tala 66110, Jordan

solar power plant (CSPP) technology in Jordan is assessed and the nextrst CSPP in the country are presented. For this purpose, a prototype ofeneration in Jordan is proposed and analysis of its economic feasibility hasalculation model using the concept design of the proposed CSPP, and theveloped to estimate the energy yield of the plant. Based on the analyzedound that Jordan has an outstanding potential for CSPP, especially in thentry such as Quweira. At the same time Jordans energy master plan isy supply and for an increasing share of renewable energies. Furthermore,

le at ScienceDirect

er Production

evier .com/locate/ jc leproa prototype of a 50 MWCSPP is proposed for electricity generation.

the parabolic trough type plants have entered into commercialoperation so far.

Following is a summary of noteworthy solar thermal electricprojects and related activities in the globe.

3.1. The solar electric generation system plants in California

The only commercially operated plants can be found in Cal-ifornia, USA. They use the technology of parabolic trough collectors.Nine plants with a total capacity of 354 MWel have been built there.

f Cleaner Production 17 (2009) 625635Analysis of energy yield and economic feasibility of the plant havebeen also performed.

2. Potential of CSPP

Contrary to its sister technology photovoltaics (PV), CSPP canoperate at peak efciency using only the direct solar irradianceconcentrated by concentrating solar collectors, such as parabolictroughs and central receivers, whereas PV technology can use bothdirect and diffuse irradiances. Therefore, full exploitation of theCSPP is limited to those geographical regions where the annualdirect irradiation levels are high; the so-called Sun-belt area whichincludes: the MENA region (where Jordan is located), SouthernEurope, Mexico and southwest USA, parts of India and Pakistan,South Africa, Australia, parts of Brazil and Chile [13].

According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), concen-trated solar thermal technology certainly has rich potential. It isdestined to move from being a relatively modest renewable energysource to a signicant contributor in 2040, alongside currentmarket leaders like hydro and wind power. Todays total installedcapacity of 355 MW will have exceeded 6400 MW by 2015, that is18 times todays capacity. By 2025, the annual installation rate willbe 4600 MW/year. By 2025, total installed capacity around theworld will have reached the impressive gure of 36,850 MW [14].

Equally impressive are the scenarios for electricity output fromCSPP. Assuming that the rst installations will operate for 2500 hper year and that later installations have internal storage systems toincrease this to 3500 h per year by 2025, and to 5000 h per year by2040, solar thermal power will be growing at a pace that alreadyachieves an annual output of more than 95 TWh in 2025 and over16,000 TWh by 2040. That would represent as much as 5% of globaldemand. More than 362 million tonnes of CO2 emissions would beavoided each year in 2025 [15].

Against todays backdrop of increasingly serious energy-securityand climate change challenges, these projections are ample justi-cation for a yet more vigorous effort to give CSPP its rightful placein the energy mix. The IEAs Solar PACES program is well placed inthemainstream CSPP community to provide leadership in pursuingthat goal.

For Jordans case taking in account that Jordan is a non-oilproducing country the chances of CSPP success are high, due tothe high values of direct solar irradiation and due to the highcurrent oil prices. Based on these two facts, it is expected that pricesof electricity produced by the CSPP will be competitive with theelectricity, produced by means of traditional power plants oper-ating on conventional fuel.

3. Overview of the international CSPP projects

Solar thermal power plants have a long standing history.Already in 1890 a steam engine has been powered by a solarconcentrating collector. In 1912, the rst solar thermal power plantwith parabolic trough collectors became operative in Egypt. Thecapacity of this facility was 500 kW. The technology of combininga steam engine or a steam turbine with solar heat is plausible andsimple.

However, the availability of cheap fuel during the 20th century ledto a decline of interest in solar drivenpowerplants. Only the so-calledoil crisis in the 1970s, caused a renaissance of solar technology. Inseveral countries, research in theeldof solar energywasnancedbythe governments. Solar thermal power plants in pilot-plant-scale(most of them around 1 MWel) have been built in the USA, Spain,France, Italy and Russia. The leading countries in research in this eldhave been the USA, Spain and Germany. So far, three types of CSPP

M.S. Al-Soud, E.S. Hrayshat / Journal o626have reachedamature status: (i) parabolic trough solar power plants;(ii) solar tower plants; and (iii) dish-stirling systems. Whereas onlyTable 1 shows some details of these plants [16], which are namedsolar electric generating system (SEGS).

Fig. 1 shows the principal design of a parabolic trough collectorand a scheme of the SEGS plant as they are running in California.The SEGS plants employ a dual circuit system. In the primary circuita heat transfer uid (HTF) with a high boiling temperature of 400 Cis heated while it ows through the absorber tube. In a heatexchanger the thermal energy is transferred to a conventionalwatersteam power process. The collectors are oriented in NorthSouth direction and follow the sun by one-axis tracking system. Theplants are equipped with a fossil-red auxiliary boiler whichenables the plants to produce electricity even at cloud passages orafter sunset.

The Californian plants are privately nanced projects. The plantowner sells the generated electricity to the utility, Southern Cali-fornian Edison. The power purchase agreements (PPA) have a runtime of 10 years. Hence the oldest plants are currently operatingunder their 3rd PPA. The plants are running since 15 years andmore(the oldest since 21 years) and show a very high availability. Theyhave generated more than 12,000 GWh so far and are still in a goodcondition.

3.2. AndaSol solar troughs

Spains AndaSol projects, being developed by Solar Millenniumand ACS Cobra, are the rst large-scale parabolic trough powerplants in Europe. Each AndaSol project represents a fully dis-patchable capacity of 50 MWe employing a highly efcient steampower cycle combined with 6 h of full-load thermal storage capa-bility. Each plant is expected to generate approximately 170 GWhper year.

The rst two AndaSol plants, AndaSols 1 and 2, are located in thehigh valley of Marquesado de Zenete, 60 km southeast of Granadaat an elevation of approximately 1000 m (3300 ft). A 400-kV high-voltage transmission line crosses the valley, and a new substation isplanned for a nearby city. Construction of AndaSol 1 began inSeptember 2006 and is scheduled for completion in late 2008.AndaSol 2 construction began in February 2007 and will becompleted approximately 24 months later.

Each plant consists of 624 collectors 150 m long, whichconcentrate sunlight about 80 times onto absorber tubes installedin the focal line. Absorber tubes consist of a stainless steel tubewitha selective coating that is covered by a glass envelope tube to

Table 1Data of the SEGS parabolic trough solar power plants in California, USA.

Plant name SEGS I plant SEGS II VII plant SEGS VIII andIX plants

Number of plants 1 6 2Location Dagget Dagget at Kramer Jct. Harper lakeStart of operation 1985 19861989 1990 and 1991Power (MW) 14 30 80Collector width (m) 2.50 5 and 5.76 5.76Max. uid temperature (C) 307 350 and 390 390

Annual average efciency (%) 9.3 10.712.4 13.8Investment cost ($/kWel) 4490 32003870 2890

nd s

M.S. Al-Soud, E.S. Hrayshat / Journal of Clereduce thermal losses. The annular space between absorber tubeand glass tube is evacuated. Through the absorber tubes circulatesa synthetic oil heat transfer uid that is heated to a temperature ofnearly 400 C [17].

The AndaSol plants will use new SKAL-ET collectors, which weredeveloped and qualied by the Solar Millennium group and itspartners for the AndaSol project. To extend operation beyonddaylight hours, thermal energy storage will be integrated into theplant design. Solar energy collected during the day will be trans-ferred to a molten salt solution at a temperature of approximately385 C.

3.3. The parabolic troughs in Priolo Gargallo and Specchia (TheArchimede project)

The parabolic trough power plant of Priolo Gargallo whoseconstruction has begun on 2004, and its rst production of energyis forecasted for the end of 2009 is an Integrated Solar CombinedCycle (ISCC). This means that it is coupled to a conventional gas andsteam cogeneration plant, providing an expected extra output of20760 MWel that it is already delivering. The project is calledARCHIMEDE and it is a joint venture between the main partner, theItalian public research institute ENEA, and the Italian nationalenergy company ENEL. They are working together with many otherminor private companies. The main parameters of the projects areexhibited in Table 2 [18].

The main advantage of the hybrid solution is that the solar plantwill make large use of the already existing non-solar components,therefore focusing the investment costs on the solar technologyelements. Moreover, the electricity generation can be adjusted inorder to match peak-demands during the day. Other newimprovements are:

Fig. 1. The parabolic trough collector with absorber tube (a) a A cheaper and more robust mirror design A higher operating temperature, which is now about 550 C,which requires, in turn, a new design of the coating of the layerreceiving the concentrated solar light

The use of an environmentally friendly, non-ammable coolingliquid

Table 2Main parameters of Archimede project.

Plant location Priolo Gargallo (Syracause)

Orientation of collectors NorthSouthNumber of collectors 360Active surface of collectors (103 m2) 199.1Thermal energy collected per year (GWh/year) 179.4Gross thermal energy generated per year (GWh/year) 59.2Annual CO2 emissions avoided (ton/year) 39,458Annual primary energy savings (ton/year) 12,703 The introduction of a large heat storage, which can fullycompensate for solar discontinuities.

4. Solar irradiation over Jordan and site selection forinstalling the proposed CSPP

Solar irradiation the energy source for solar power plants hasdirect and diffuse components. Only the direct irradiation can befocused and thus be utilized by the CSPP for electricity generation.Measurement of solar radiation can be performed by different tech-niques, and is basically distinguished intoground-basedand satellite-based data. Satellite databases are used to identify solar irradiationpotential for huge areas, e.g. individual counties or states. The valuesfor solar irradiation are calculated from the extraterrestrial constantreducedbyclouds, dust or other atmospheric inuencesmeasured bymeteorological satellites. Ground-based data are used for moredetailed site investigations. Fundamental planning and detailedproject development including energy yield forecast can only becarried out on the basis of this data. The difference between satellite-based and ground-based data for a short time frame of anhour can besignicant for two reasons: (1) Satellite pictures represent a point oftime while ground measuring instruments calculate averages; (2)Satellite pictures show a land area, while ground installedmeasurements are xed to a distinct place. Nevertheless, the differ-ence between satellite-based and ground-based data for yearly sumsis about 3% of the total solar radiation which is relatively small withrespect to the short time frame and thus, the correlation betweenthe two data sources over a longer time period is good [19].

A detailed analysis of the direct solar irradiation over Jordan isa very important step to identify the sites which are best situatedfor efcient electricity generation. Fig. 2 shows the solar map ofJordan employing satellite-based solar irradiation data [20].

chematic (b) of the parabolic trough SEGS plant in California.

aner Production 17 (2009) 625635 627Colored areas show Jordanian locations where an operation of CSPPis technically possible. An operation of CSPP is economically viableabove an average annual direct normal irradiation (DNI) of2000 kWh/m2 annually [21]. In Jordan there is a high potential forCSPP since the average annual DNI is above this value at most sites.The most potential sites are those located in the southern part ofthe country.

Fig. 3 exhibits the theoretical economical potential for electricitygeneration by CSPP in Jordan, calculated using the satellite-basedsolar irradiation data obtained from Ref. [20]. It amounts to about6400 TWh/year (The current electricity consumption of Jordan is9 TWh/year [7]). Exclusion areas like urban and industrial use,hydrograph, protected areas, land cover, geomorphology andtopography are also considered in this gure.

Ground based measured DNI in Jordan is available only for fewsites. Measurement stations have been established and maintainedfrom June 1989 to July 1992 at Quweira, RasNaqab and Kharana bythe Paul Scherrer Institute/Switzerland.

Fig. 2. Solar map of Jordan with average daily sum

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Fig. 3. The theoretical economical potential for electricity generation by CSPP inJordan.

M.S. Al-Soud, E.S. Hrayshat / Journal of Cl628 eaner Production 17 (2009) 625635Quweira and RasNaqab are located in the southwestern part ofthe country, where direct irradiation is very high, while Kharana issituated in the northern part of Jordan. Ground-based data is onlyavailable for Quweira. Correlations between Quweira and RasaNaqb located at a distance of 30 km from each other showed nosignicant difference. Solar maps from satellite data show, that anaverage DNI-value of 2400 kWh/m2/year could be expected forKharana. All the three sites are excellent for CSPP. However, furthersite analysis will be presented for Quweira only, because ground-based data is not available for the other two sites.

Year-to-year uctuations of DNI data could be reduced by longertime series. Fig. 4 shows that after 810 years the deviation fromthe typically meteorological year (TMY) is below 5%.

Fig. 5 shows the DNI grid in hour/month resolution for the year1990 at Quweira, located in the southern part of Jordan at latitudeof 29470, longitude of 3518, and elevation of 794 m above sealevel. With the shown DNI values, more than 800 GWh of solarirradiation can be collected by the solar eld every year. The year1990 is displayed here, because the year 1991 is generally known asa doubtfully representative year for the Middle East region. Due to

of direct normal irradiation per square meter.

the eruption of Volcano Pinatubo on the Philippines (on July 15,1991) and the Gulf War (starting in January 1991), direct irradiationis lower in 1991 and diffuse irradiation is higher at the same time.

The design concept for the proposed CSPP is based on thefollowing assumptions:

Solar irradiation according to measured data at Quweira No fossil-red steam boiler No storage.

This rst concept excludes a supporting fossil-red boiler. In fullproject development a back-up system should be included to

wet cooling, the overall efciency of the steam cycle decreases.

Fig. 4. Deviation from the global radiation TMY value.

Table 3Comparison of cooling technologies.

Cooling technology Wet Dry

Steam cycle efciency 37% 35%Parasitic electricity consumption 5 MW 7MWEnergy yield 117 GWh 109 GWhEvaporated water 180 m3/MW Investment 2.9 Million JD 9.6 Million JD

M.S. Al-Soud, E.S. Hrayshat / Journal of Cleaner Production 17 (2009) 625635 6295. The proposed CSPP

The proposed CSPP is subdivided into three systems, which arelinked to each other: the collector eld, the heat transfer uid (HTF)system, and the power block.

The collector eld consists of collector loops, arranged inparallel. Each loop consists of collectors, arranged in series to a loop.Collectors concentrate the solar irradiation to a focal line, where theHTF the kind of which is proprietary information is heated up. Inorder to focus the sunlight, the collectors need to be moved bya tracking system.

The HTF system is used for heat transportation. Hot HTF ata temperature level of about 390 C is transported from thecollectors to the power block. After dispensing the heat for steamgeneration, the HTF is pumped back to the collectors at a temper-ature level of about 290 C. Core components are pumps for HTFcirculation, pipes, valves and vessels. The melting point of HTF is12 C. Thus, a heater is installed to prevent the HTF from freezing,when ambient temperature falls below 12 C.

The power block converts heat from the HTF to superheatedsteam and then to electricity. Feed water heating and a reheatturbine is used to increase efciency. The power block includesfossil-red back-up systems in order to provide a back-up forperiods without sun.Fig. 5. DNI grid in hour/month rFrom the nancial point of view it has to be considered thatinvestment costs for dry cooling are higher. Summarizing the abovementioned, dry cooling has three main disadvantages, which arelisted against wet cooling in Table 3. However, a decisionwas madeto utilize the dry cooling method based on the fact that Jordansuffers from water shortages.extend plant availability. This could either be a thermal storage ora fossil-red boiler. The decision of the collector type has a majorimpact on the collector eld design. The utilized Eurotroughcollector is developed by a European consortium to improve theperformance based on the experiences made at the solar electricgenerating system power plants.

5.1. Cooling technology to be utilized for the proposed CSPP

Technically, the most efcient cooling technology is cooling viaevaporation. Themost cost efcient cooling technology for a CSPP ismainly dependent on the cost for water at the site. Since best sitesfor CSPP are generally located in the desert, water is most likelyused for other purposes than power plant supply. Dry coolingbecomes very attractive at those sites. It requires enforcedconvection through a fan. This increases the parasitic powerconsumption signicantly. Since dry cooling is less efcient thanesolution for Quweira, 1990.

M.S. Al-Soud, E.S. Hrayshat / Journal of Cl630The aforementioned assumptions led to CSPP with the shown inFig. 6 layout and parameters summarized in Table 4. The proposedplant which will use a land area of 1,200,000 m2 and an apertureof 305,200 m2 represents a fully dispatchable capacity of 50 MWe.It employs 560 Eurotrough 100 collectors with 70 loops. Based onthe solar radiation intensities at the plants site located in Jordan,the full-load hours are expected to be 2345, and the plant isexpected to generate approximately 117 GWh per year.

5.2. Simulation of the proposed CSPP energy yield

In order to estimate the energy yield of the proposed CSPP atQuweira, a calculation model using the concept design of theproposed CSPP was developed at Lahmeyer International. Thecalculation proceeds in the following manner:

(1) Calculation of the thermal power of the solar eld using thefollowing parameters:

Position of the sun for the given site Hourly DNI values Collector type and efciency

Fig. 6. Layout plan of the p

Table 4Design characteristics of the proposed CSPP.

Capacity 50 MWNumber of collectors 560Collector type Eurotrough 100Number of loops 70Aperture 305,200 m2

Land use 1,200,000 m2

Full-load hours 2345Annual electricity yield 117 GWhCooling Dryeaner Production 17 (2009) 625635 Number of collectors in the solar eld Row shading Thermal inertia Parasitic power consumption Turbine overload

(2) Calculation of the electrical power of the solar power plant

The electrical power of the solar eld is calculated from theefciency of the Rankine-cycle as function of thermal load. Thisefciency is derived from the simulation software Thermo-ow.

Figs. 7 and 8 exhibit the calculation results of the solar eldthermal power and electrical power of the plant, respectively.Considering turbine overload conditions during summer monthsand parasitic power consumption of the plant, the electricalproduction, generated by the power plant sums up as displayed inFig. 9. It is observed that a peak power production occurs in thesummer months. This production curve does meet the demand ofJordan. Yearly and daily peak demand periods are dependent oncooling facilities such as air conditioners.

Fig. 10 exhibits the typical electricity demand over a year inJordan [7]. It shows that the supply curve of a CSPP and the demandcurve of Jordan match closely in a daily and yearly cycle. CSPPs areespecially suitable for peak power demand, because they have theirhighest efciency at summer months and during midday whenelectricity demand reaches its peak. Extension of the electricityproduction in the evening can be achieved by a thermal storagesystem or a fossil-red boiler.

5.3. Economic feasibility analysis

Calculation of the levelized electricity cost (LEC) was performed,using estimated engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC)costs in addition to operation and maintenance (O and M) costs.

roposed 50 MW CSPP.

of CleM.S. Al-Soud, E.S. Hrayshat / JournalThe monetary data was expressed in Jordanian Dinar (JD), where 1JD 1000 Fils (F)z 1.41 US$.

The EPC costs supplied in Table 5 are obtained from expe-rience at the existing solar electric generating system plants in theworld. A continuous plant operation includes frequent replacementof materials and media. This includes especially reector panels,

Fig. 7. Thermal power of the

Fig. 8. Electrical power of the

Fig. 9. Monthly production of taner Production 17 (2009) 625635 631heat collecting elements and heat transfer uid. The plantconsumes also water and electricity to run the power block. Wateris mainly used for the power block and also for mirror cleaning.Table 5 summarizes these costs.

The LEC calculation considers rates for return on equity of 12%and 3% interests for bonded capital in a base case scenario. For the

proposed 50 MW CSPP.

proposed 50 MW CSPP.

he proposed 50 MW CSPP.

Comparing the obtained LEC and the annual production from

which 1873 MW is the capacity of the interconnected system, thismeans that the inter-connected system constitutes 92.8% of the

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Minimum load Morning load Evening load Table 6Input parameters for LEC calculation.

Parameter Case 1 Case 2 Case 3 Case 4

Total investment cost (million JD) 170 170 170 170Debt share (%) 70 70 70 70Debt interest rate (%) 6 3 3 3Return on equity (%) 12 12 12 12Annuity (%) 8.7 6.7 5.1 6.7Depreciation time (years) 20 20 30 30Grace period (years) 0 0 0 10O&M cost (million JD/year) 3.86 3.86 3.86 3.86Capacity (MW) 50 50 50 50Full-load operation (h/year) 2345 2345 2345 2345

M.S. Al-Soud, E.S. Hrayshat / Journal of Cleaner Production 17 (2009) 625635632capital distribution, the following was assumed: 70% foreign capitaland 30% equity capital. Total Investment cost for this calculation hasto include soft costs: project development, land cost, fees forlicenses, consulting and any other expenses directly related to theproject. Soft costs are assumed to be 10% of the EPC costs.

When a grace period is considered, the annuity is calculated forthe years left to pay off the credit. Therefore, it appears to be higherin the repayment period, than for the same conditionwithout graceperiod. For the grace period, very soft nancing conditions areassumed. This includes in particular no repay and no interestpayment during that period. Table 6 shows the input parametersfor LEC calculation.

The LEC was calculated in four different loan conditions underthe following assumptions:

In case 1, a situation close to market conditions is represented In case 2, the interest rate is reduced from 6% to 3% In case 3, the depreciation time is increased from 20 years to 30years

In case 4, a grace period of 10 years is introduced.

In case 4 a dept interest rate which is the annual rate ofinterest paid to the debt holder at the end of each year of the termof the debt of 3%, depreciation period that is the period overwhich the project capital costs are depreciated using a constant rate

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Fig. 10. Typical electricity demand over a year in Jordan. of 30 years and a grace period where very soft nancingconditions are assumed, including in particular no repay and nointerest payment during that period of 10 years were introduced.These three factors with the chosen values are expected to havea great role in reducing the LEC value.

Fig. 11 exhibits the LEC for the four different loan conditions inaddition to the average current LEC [16]. It reveals that the lowestLEC which equals about 107 JF/kWh is obtained for the fourth loancondition. This value is comparable with the average current LEC obtained from hybrid parabolic trough plants of about 106.5 JF/kWh. These values of LEC are expected to be reduced to approxi-mately 40 JF/kWh in the medium term after a successful penetra-tion of the electricity market. This would be competitive with thetypical fossilfuel generation costs [16].

Table 5Parameters utilized in the economic feasibility analysis.

Estimated erection time 2 YearsDurability More than 20 yearsEPC cost 155 Million JDO&M staff 40 Employeestotal installed capacity in Jordan. The total length of 132 kVnetwork and above is about 3400 km-circuit and the total installedcapacity of the substations is 6189 mVA.

Due to the fact that the proposed CSPP will be located in Queira which is connected to national grid it will be very easy toconnect the CSPP to the national grid to support it and becausethe proposed plant, with those of PV systems obtained fromRef. [22], reveals that for low irradiation values the annual output ofsolar thermal systems is much lower than of PV systems. On theother hand, for high irradiations solar thermal systems provide thebest-cost solution even when considering higher cost reductionfactors for PV in the next decade.

6. Electrical power system in Jordan and possible connectionwith the proposed CSPP

The interconnected electrical power system of Jordan, shown inFig. 12 [23] consists of the main generating power stations, 132 kVand 400 kV transmission network. This transmission networkinterconnects the power stations with the load centers anddifferent areas in the kingdom. The system also includes the230 kV, 400 kV tie lines with Syria, and 400 kV tie linewith Egypt inaddition to the distribution networks, which serve the populationin Jordan. In addition to that, the electrical power system in Jordanincludes some private power stations, which are synchronized withthe rest of the power stations in the intergraded network and thereare a few private power stations, which are not connected with theinterconnected network and serve only their owners. The totalsystem installed capacity at the end of 2007 was 2019 MW, of020406080

100120140160180200

1 2 3 4 Current LECCASE

LE

C (JF

/kW

h)

Fig. 11. LEC for the four different loan conditions.

of CleM.S. Al-Soud, E.S. Hrayshat / JournalQueira is close to Egypt, part of the electricity produced by the CSPPcould be exported to Egypt.

7. Road map for the rst commercial CSPP in Jordan

The technical market potential of CSPP worldwide is estimatedto be greater than 6400 MW over the next 20 years [15]. However,due to the high cost of CSPP and the competition with other formsof electricity generation, it will depend on nancial support andincentives until the industry develops the technologies and econ-omies of scale needed to become truly cost-competitive. In thiscontext, seven countries (Jordan, Algeria, Egypt, Germany, Israel,Morocco and Spain) in addition to U.S. state of (Nevada) adoptedthe Global Market Initiative (GMI) with the objective of supportingthe creation of adequate market conditions conducive to build newCSPP plants and to expedite the deployment of 5000 MWe of CSPplants by 2015 [16].

To make the long-term investments needed to achieve lowercosts, a visible, reliable, and growing market for solar thermal

Fig. 12. Jordan electrianer Production 17 (2009) 625635 633power must be established. Three policy areas will have thegreatest impact on that objective: targets and tariffs, regulations,and nancing mechanisms.

With respect to targets and tariffs, GMI organizers recommendthat countries and states participating in the GMI establisha consistent base of national laws and regulations, such as adequatefeed-in tariffs or public benet charges specically for CSPP. Theyshould establish renewable portfolio standards (RPS) or similarmechanisms that encourage electricity generation from renew-ables, specically CSPP.

With respect to regulations, GMI urges policy makers to avoidlimitations on CSPP capacity or operating strategies that couldincrease the cost of introducing the technology. Policy makersshould also remove restrictive laws that hinder interconnection toCSPP to allow more cost-effective connection to the electric grid.

With respect to nancing, GMI advocates recommend thatKyoto Protocol instruments should be applicable to CSPP and bebankable. They also advise policy makers to institute productiontax credits similar to those now enjoyed by wind power, and

c power system.

To allow a moderate introduction of the CSPP into the existing

Erection of ground-based measurement stations for collectinglong-term direct solar irradiation and meteorological data.

f Clwhich stimulated the growth of wind power in some countries.In addition, policy makers should establish loan guaranteeprograms and maintain investment tax credits to support theinitial capital investments needed before CSPP plants begin toproduce power.

For the Jordanian and developing countries (especially thoselocated in the MENA region) case, when the nancial framework isset-up, an international tendering procedure for an independentpower producer (IPP) which were encouraged by energy sectorscomprehensive national strategy approved by the JordanianCouncil of Ministers in January 2004 to implement energyprojects on BOO (Build-Own-Operate), BOT (Build-Operate-Transfer) and BOOT (Build-Own-Operate-Transfer) basis is recom-mend [24]. Loans will be easily obtained from some of the mainsponsors of energy investments in the developing world, i.e. theWorldbank Group, the Kreditanstalt fur Wiederaufbau (KfW), theEuropean Investment Bank (EIB) in addition to the Global Envi-ronmental Facility (GEF) (who approved grants for rst solarthermal projects in Egypt, India, Mexico and Morocco of approxi-mately US$ 200 million in total only in the year 2000, when the oilprice was only US$ 30/barrel [25]) who have recently beenconvinced due to current oil prices of the environmentalpromises and the economic perspectives of CSPP.

The IPP will sell the produced electricity to the tariff xed in thefeed-in law. The IPP structure is proposed due to the bindingmomentum for both sides. The IPP is bound to produce electricityand the government is bound to buy the electricity on a xed tariffbasis. This approach includes the contracting of a consultant fortender document preparation. Call for proposals and proposalevaluation will be performed by the consultant. The Governmentwill then make a decision on the preferred bidder and will contractan IPP for the rst CSPP.

For Jordans and MENA region case, reliable data for DNI of theproposed site have to be available for solid development of a CSPP.Therefore, data collection at the most promising sites should beginin parallel to the development and completion of the nancialboundary conditions.

The above described steps are summarized as follows:

(1) Regulatory and nancial conditions for investorsEither

Development of a feed-in tariff regulation for REOr

Application for soft loan at a suited international nancinginstitution

Approval of soft loan (to be granted to the successful IPPbidder)

International bidding procedure for an IPP.

(2) Technical requirements

Collection of ground and satellite-based DNI data.

8. Conclusions

It bodeswell that renewable energy technologies such as CSPP have become an important issue for most of the developed anddeveloping countries, especially those located in the MENA region,which includes Jordan. The rise of oil prices, the shortage of energy, inaddition to the fact that operation of CSPP is economically viable inmost of Sun built regions such as the MENA countries (since theaverage DNI values there are above the economically viable averageannual direct normal irradiation of 2000 kWh/m2 annually) haveinitiateda renewed interest inCSPP. Thepolitical dimension is further

M.S. Al-Soud, E.S. Hrayshat / Journal o634demonstrated by the formation by the GMI nations of a taskforceto nd ways of stimulating the creation of adequate marketAcknowledgements

Authors would like to express their sincere gratitude to Eng. Z.Jibril Director of Renewable Energy Department/JordanianMinistry of Energy and Mineral Resources for his valuable help andsupport.

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