A developer of solar heat technology, headquartered in Spain, has been selected to provide the equipment and tools for a 10-megawatt concentrated solar thermal power plant on Kauai.

Albiasa Corp. was selected by Kauai-based Pacific Light & Power to develop and supply its parabolic trough system, which collects solar thermal energy. The project aims to supply energy to 8,000 single-family homes.

“;Incorporating Albiasa technology and engineering services will help us deliver a high-yield and cost-effective clean-energy source and ultimately enable us to deliver better rates for our customers,”; said Dick Roth, chief executive officer of Pacific Light & Power.

The solar farm will be constructed on 100 acres of land between Waimea and Kekaha on Kauai. The project is expected to start construction by the end of this year and be completed by 2011. It is the first renewable-energy project on Kauai, and when completed might be the largest in Hawaii.

Albiasa's U.S. operations are based out of San Francisco. There are projects in California and Arizona that are either in development or under consideration.

The company's project in Arizona, for a 200-megawatt facility, costs up to $900 million. Albiasa's capital investment into the Kauai project is more than $25 million.

Kauai's smaller size, along with the fact it has among the highest energy costs in the nation, offers Albiasa an opportunity to make a big impact on utility costs and the island's environmental footprint, company officials said yesterday.

“;In the mainland there's a large amount of transportation resources; it's a large market and larger economy,”; said Jesse Tippett, Albiasa's managing director. “;This project shows that we can replicate smaller solar farms and projects across the U.S. and further the growing adoption of renewable energy.”;

The parabolic trough technology absorbs concentrated sunlight heat into a tube filled with heat transfer fluid. The fluid passes to a heat exchanger that generates steam for turbine engines.

“;You have inertia in the system that allows you to continually generate electricity even during low points of solar radiation,”; said Albert Fong, Albiasa's chief engineer.

Pacific Light & Power is currently negotiating a long-term power purchase agreement with the Kauai Island Utility Cooperative.