Industeel has supplied 1,150 tonnes of specialised steel for Noor III, the world’s largest concentrated solar power plant. This plant is being constructed 10km from Ouarzazate, in Morocco. Developed with sustainability in mind, the complex will enable Morocco to source almost half the country’s energy from renewables by 2020. It is estimated that it could produce enough energy to power more than one million homes and reduce carbon emissions by an estimated 760,000 tonnes per year.
Noor III uses a solar power tower topped by a central receiver which heats molten salts to extremely high temperatures reaching around 560°C. This technology required the use of our special UR™347H stainless steel grade – a niobium-stabilised austenitic steel produced at our Charleroi and Le Creusot plants – for the production of heat exchangers, steam generators, high temperature pipes and molten salt storage tanks.
Industeel was awarded the prestigious contract thanks to its long-standing relationships with the various equipment manufacturers, among which Prominox, the Moroccan company specialised in stainless steel fabrication who was awarded the construction of the hot molten salts tank. Prominox provided the photos of the assembly of the 19400m³ tank (diameter 41m, height 144m) that will operate at 550°C to store 7 hours of operation of the solar plant.
