Commercially operational since February 2016, the Khi Solar One thermal solar tower stands at 205 metres (673 ft). South Africa’s first solar tower plant, Khi Solar One has a reflecting area of 580,000 m² made up of 4,000 heliostats, allowing it to supply enough clean energy to power 45,000 homes.

The 50-MW concentrating solar power (CSP) station has a maximum operating system of 530°C, and can accumulate enough saturated steam to allow it to produce electricity at full capacity for two hours after sunset. The project is estimated to eliminate the production of 183,000 tonnes of CO2 per year.

It was announced in March 2016 that the plant achieved 24-hours of operation with solar energy only – the first tower plant to achieve this feat.

Our involvement:

  • On completion of the building of the main tower, we were responsible for the climbing down and removal of ties of a Wilbert tower crane.

Contact Van Doorn for a complimentary consultation for your next tower crane project.


Watch Khi Solar One Tower

The video below shows the scale of the project.