Solar Reserve's Crescent Dunes CSP system - Image
Concentrated solar power (CSP) with molten salt energy storage are technologies that seamlessly interact to provide an excellent source of reliable power. This combination is making a comeback as solar PV capacity reaches levels that causes instability to the grid.
Sunlight from a field of mirrors is concentrated on one point at the top of a tower. This intense light heats salt to over 1,000 degrees Fahrenheit. Then, the concentrated heat is used to generate steam which turns a turbine. Because the molten salt retains heat so well, it can continue generating for 10 hours after sun down. Making this all-in-one system, the equivalent of a large solar PV array in combination with battery energy storage.
A company called SolarReserve operates 10 CSP plants around the world. One particular plant shown in the photo was opened in 2015. It is a 110-MW installed at Crescent Dunes, Nevada. It has 1,100 megawatt-hours of energy storage, and the facility can power up to 75,000 homes at a cost of only $0.06 per kilowatt hour.
SolarReserve has lots of stats and other info from each of their operating plants on their website.