GlassPoint Presents New Cost Saving Results from its Gigawatt Solar Project in Oman

Technical paper co-authored with Petroleum Development Oman presented
at SolarPACES details 55% cost reductions compared to pilot

FREMONT, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–GlassPoint
Solar, the leading supplier of solar energy to the oil and gas
industry, recently published new cost saving achievements in a technical
paper presented at SolarPACES 2017. The paper, co-authored with
GlassPoint’s partner and customer Petroleum Development Oman (PDO),
details how the companies have to date reduced costs by 55 percent as
the technology scales up from a seven-megawatt (MW) pilot to Miraah, a
one-gigawatt solar thermal project under construction on an oilfield in
Oman. These savings resulted from the use of improved designs, enhanced
tooling and increased workforce productivity in deploying its enclosed
trough technology.

“GlassPoint’s pilot project for PDO, which produces steam for oil
production, has been operating successfully for more than four years.
During this time, we worked closely with our partners at PDO to enhance
the technology for oilfield deployment and improve overall cost
efficiency as we scale by a factor of 100,” said Ben Bierman, GlassPoint
COO and Acting CEO. “The results presented at SolarPACES reflect our
ongoing commitment to innovation and cost reduction to deliver the most
energy per dollar spent.”

GlassPoint’s enclosed trough technology was designed to produce steam
used in thermal enhanced oil recovery (EOR), a process typically fueled
by burning natural gas. This unique solar thermal design takes parabolic
trough collectors, or large curved mirrors, and puts them inside an
agricultural greenhouse. The mirrors concentrate sunlight on a pipe
filled with oilfield-grade water and boils the water directly into steam.

“The greenhouse serves as protection, foundation, and structure in one,
enabling major cost and performance advantages compared to exposed solar
designs. Most importantly, the zero-wind environment lets us reduce the
amount of raw materials used throughout the entire system. Using less
material reduces the weight and costs of the solar collectors, and makes
the plant easier to install and easier to maintain,” explained Pete von
Behrens, GlassPoint’s CTO.

The paper, Deploying Enclosed Trough for Thermal EOR at Commercial
Scale, details many of the ways GlassPoint has been able to simplify
its solar collectors, which are suspended from thin wires from the
greenhouse roof.

GlassPoint optimized the equipment and mirror manufacturing process,
improving yield in the factory and mirror performance in the field. The
mirror material was reduced by 18 percent to a little over 1 kg/m2,
reducing material costs. They also deployed a new, lighter and stiffer
mirror support structure. The new aluminum space frame design, assembled
onsite, is five times stiffer than the previous design and cut aluminum
usage by 30 percent. GlassPoint is also deploying a new drive system,
which is used to rotate the mirrors to track the sun, that uses
one-third fewer motors, and further reduces installation and maintenance
costs.

GlassPoint also improved construction productivity, overcoming the
challenges of operating in remote desert conditions. In addition to
developing special tooling and equipment to streamline installation,
GlassPoint also focused on careful training of its local contractors,
who had no experience with solar projects. As a result, Miraah has
already achieved 60 percent reduction in labor hours and has a clear
path to further reductions as construction progresses.

GlassPoint’s seven MWt pilot for PDO has been operating since
2013 and paved the way for Miraah, which began construction in November
2015 at the same oilfield in south Oman. It will generate 1,021 MW of
peak thermal energy once complete, making it one of the world’s largest
solar plants of any kind. Miraah will be comprised of 36 standard
greenhouse blocks built in a continuous sequence. In August 2017, the
first greenhouse block was completed safely, on schedule and on budget
with the construction of the remaining 35 blocks ongoing.

Held last week in Chile, SolarPACES is the world’s leading technical
conference for the concentrating solar power (CSP) industry. Last year
in the United Arab Emirates, the SolarPACES executive committee awarded
GlassPoint the Technology Innovation Award for its innovations and cost
breakthroughs.

About GlassPoint Solar

GlassPoint Solar is the leading supplier of solar energy to the oil and
gas industry. The global oil and gas industry consumes an amount of
energy equal to 10% of its own production, making it one of the biggest
markets for renewable energy. Operating worldwide from the Middle East
to California, GlassPoint’s enclosed trough technology delivers the
lowest cost energy to power oilfield operations. By harnessing sunshine,
instead of burning natural gas or other fuels, GlassPoint helps oil
producers reduce operating expenses while significantly cutting
greenhouse gas emissions.

GlassPoint is one of the fastest-growing solar companies in the world
with more than one gigawatt of solar oilfield projects under
construction, and was recognized by the World Economic Forum as a
Technology Pioneer for its role in enabling more economical and
sustainable oil production.

For more information, visit GlassPoint.com

Contacts

Antenna Group for GlassPoint
Josh Garrett, 646-957-5371
glasspoint@antennagroup.com