National Renewable Energy Laboratory

Concentrating Solar Power Research

USA Trough Initiative

Through the USA Trough Initiative, NREL supports the U.S. Department of Energy's efforts to expand U.S. industry involvement and competitiveness in worldwide parabolic trough development activities. This includes helping to advance the state of parabolic trough technology from a U.S. knowledge base.

As a result of its experience and expertise with solar electric generation system (SEGS) plants, the United States is uniquely positioned to play a key role in the future development of parabolic trough technologies in other countries. And currently, much of the parabolic trough technology development has been occurring outside of the United States.

NREL's USA Trough Initiative objectives include:

• Advancing the state-of-the-art parabolic trough technology, integration, analysis, and services to improve U.S. competitiveness. Specific activities will reduce cost, improve performance, improve reliability, and reduce commercial risk.
  
  
• Increasing U.S. scope and/or supply of future near- and longer-term domestic and international parabolic trough projects.

The U.S. Department of Energy began the USA Trough Initiative in 1999.

Visit TroughNet for more information about parabolic trough power plant technology.