Solar Tower is Europe’s first commercially operating power station using the Sun’s energy this way and at the moment its operator, Solucar, proudly claims that it generates 11 Megawatts (MW) of electricity without emitting a single puff of greenhouse gas. This current figure is enough to power up to 6,000 homes.

 But ultimately, the entire plant should generate as much power as is used by the 600,000 people of Seville.
The solar tower is 115m (377ft) tall and surrounded by 600 steel reflectors (heliostats). They track the sun and direct its rays to a heat exchanger (receiver) at the top of the tower…

The receiver converts concentrated solar energy from the heliostats into steam
Steam is stored in tanks and used to drive turbines that will produce enough electricity for up to 6,000 homes

Images from BBC.co.uk