Get involved!

Industry partnerships

ASTRI is keen to develop mutually beneficial relationships with industry to help develop projects related to the various processes involved in a CST plant.  If you are interested in knowing more about how you can collaborate with ASTRI please contact us.

Research positions

Please contact our partner institutions if you are interested in research positions. Current partners are:

Solar thermal educational resources

Learn more about concentrated solar thermal.

We are currently in the process of developing material for the website to help you understand Concentrated Solar Thermal (CST) Power and the important role of CST research for the future of Australia and the world.

In the meantime there are some great resources to learn more including:

ABENGOA – Innovative technology solutions for sustainability. Abengoa is a world leader in both technological and installed capacity in solar thermal technology. Its offer in this field includes technological advice, engineering services, EPC, consulting, component development (solar field) or O&M services. Abengoa develops the two most widely used commercial solar thermal technologies: Tower and Parabolic trough. Thanks to the combination of these technologies with salt storage, the production of the plant is guaranteed during long periods of lack of solar radiation or even at night.

APSRC – Asia-Pacific Solar Research Conference – The APSRC provides a unique opportunity to combine the annual research reviews of Australia’s key solar research groups, representing researchers from around the region. The Conference is arranged into six streams: Photovoltaic Devices, Solar Electricity Deployment & Integration, Solar Buildings and Solar Heating & Cooling, Concentrating Solar Power, Solar Fuels & Chemistry, Off Grid & Fringe of Grid.

AEMO – Australian Energy Market Operator – AEMO manages electricity and gas systems and markets across Australia, helping to ensure Australians have access to affordable, secure and reliable energy.

ARENA – Australian Renewable Energy Agency – ARENA funds innovation and shares knowledge, accelerating Australia’s shift to affordable and reliable renewable energy.

AUSTELA – Australia Solar Thermal Energy Association – AUSTELA is working with leading research agencies to connect Australian decision-makers with leading research in solar thermal power.

CEFC – Clean Energy Finance Corporation – The Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) mobilises capital investment in renewable energy, low-emission technology and energy efficiency in Australia.

Clean Energy Council (Australia) – The peak body representing Australia’s clean energy sector made up of more than 550 member companies operating in the fields of renewable energy and energy efficiency.

ESTELA – European Solar Thermal Electricity Association – ESTELA is the voice of solar thermal electricity in Europe and Mena Region! A non-profit association created in 2007, ESTELA represents more than 50 members from the industry and research institutions, active along the whole STE value chain. Joining hands with national associations – Protermosolar (Spain), ANEST (Italy), Deutsche CSP (Germany) and the SER-CSP (France), ESTELA is devoted to promoting solar thermal electricity not only in Europe, but also in MENA region and worldwide. To act widely, ESTELA with AUSTELA and SASTELA in 2012 jointly created STELA World. Today, ESTELA is the largest industry association in the world promoting the solar thermal electricity sector.

Gen3 – Generation 3 Concentrating Solar Power Systems (Gen3 CSP). Bringing together the people and the pieces for an integrated CSP system.

GTI – The future of power generation. GTI is a leading independent non-profit research, development, and training organization addressing global energy and environmental challenges.

GRAPHITE Energy – the future of energy storage.

HELIOSTAT South Australia – Powering a brighter future with clean, cost effective energy. No matter what your clean energy needs are, we can help. Using cutting edge Concentrated Solar Power (CSP), Concentrated Solar Photovoltaic (CSPV) & Heliostat Sun Tracking technology developed in partnership with CSIRO, Heliostat SA helps companies and nations worldwide produce renewable, uninterrupted, utility grade power – even at night – with unmatched efficiency, zero emissions and minimal obsolescence. Product Design & Creation | Research & Development | Component Manufacturing | Project Management | Total Support

MGA Themal – Powering our renewable energy future. MGA Thermal’s mission is to enable the shift to renewable energy by providing a new way to store energy that’s clean, economical, and scalable.  Our core technology is a recently invented type of thermal storage material, Miscibility Gap Alloys (MGA). These are capable of storing a huge amount of energy as heat, in a safe and easy to use way. Our primary focus is enabling intermittent renewable energy sources, such as the sun and wind, to provide base load electricity to the grid. Proudly in partnership with E2S Power.

NREL – National Renewable Energy Laboratory – NREL provide scientific, engineering, and analytical expertise to help advance innovation in concentrating solar power (CSP) technologies. These technologies capture sunlight to produce heat that drives today’s conventional thermoelectric generation systems or future advanced generation systems. The unique feature of CSP is the ability to store heated material in an inexpensive and efficient thermal energy storage system. The stored thermal energy can be tapped between sunset and sunrise or during cloudy weather to provide renewable electricity on demand.

Sandia – Sandia National Laboratories – Developing and testing CSP technologies for the Department of Energy, industry and the world for over 40 years. Sandia – Sandia National Laboratories – Sandia National security programs – work with other government agencies, industry, and academic institutions to accomplish our missions in the following strategic areas: Nuclear Weapons, National Security Programs, Energy, Global Security.

SENER Energy – SENER is world leader in thermosolar power based on number of projects carried out as well as technological ability and innovation. It has completed over 29 plants spread throughout Spain, South Africa, Morocco, and the United States, totaling over 2,000 MWe of installed capacity and saving over a million tons of CO2 per year. Among them, SENER is part of the EPC building consortium of the Solar Complex NOORo, in Ouarzazate – Morocco, the largest on the planet. SENER carries out the three phases of the solar thermal project NOORo (NOORo I, NOORo NOORo II and III).

SENER’s history in solar power goes back to the 1980s, giving it a considerable technological advantage over its competitors. It has started up pioneering plants such as Andasol, the first thermosolar plant to incorporate a molten salt heat storage system, and Gemasolar, the world’s first commercially operating central tower receiver plant with this same molten salt system and the first to produce electricity for 24 hours continuously using just solar power.

SolarPACES – the international network of researchers and industry experts for the development and marketing of concentrated solar thermal power systems and solar chemistry technologies.

SolarPACES Concentrated Solar Power Projects – a database maintained by National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL).

SwRI – Southwest Research Institute – SwRI are R&D problem solvers providing independent, premier services to government and industry clients. Our multidisciplinary nature allows us to rapidly assemble diverse teams to tackle problems from multiple directions. We push the boundaries of science and technology to develop innovative solutions that advance the state of the art and improve human health and safety. Operating as a nonprofit since our 1947 inception, we work in the public’s best interest and toward the betterment of mankind. And as a contract R&D organization, we are here when you need us.

Vast Solar – Powering Overnight Dispatchable renewable energy. Reliable, Controllable, Stored Power Flexible, modular CSP with thermal storage. Vast Solar is re-engineering the future of large scale solar. They deliver modular concentrated solar thermal power technology with affordable storage.