In a sign that the nascent solar power plant industry is reaching
the point where the name of the game is less about developing new
technologies and more about managing large-scale construction projects, Silicon Valley solar company Ausra is tapping an energy industry veteran to lead the startup. Robert Fishman, 55, is leaving Calpine, a San Jose-based power company, to become
Ausra‘s CEO. As executive vice president of Calpine, Fishman managed natural gas and geothermal power plants that produce 24,500 megawatts of electricity. "This is exactly the type of experience Ausra needs as it scales rapidly into a large, utility-grade provider of cost-effective, reliable, zero carbon electricity for the world,” said venture capitalist Vinod Khosla, an Ausra investor and board member, in a statement. Ausra relocated to Palo Alto from Sydney, Australia, last year and has attracted big-name investors like Khosla and Kleiner, Perkins, Caufield & Byers, which have poured more than $40 million into the company. Founding CEO Peter Le Lièvre will manage the company’s international projects, including a demonstration power plant being constructed in Portugal. Ausra is negotiating with California’s PG&E (PCG) and other U.S. utilities to construct massive megawatt power plants and is expected to file an application with the California Energy Commission next week to build a 175-megawatt power plant.
Solar Startup Ausra Names Energy Industry Vet as CEO
September 20, 2007 by Todd Woody
Green Wombat 
Hello Todd !
I like your blog. I’m Allain from paris/France.
Thanks, Allain.
Well it will probably be printed in tomorrow’s Green Wombat but Ausra signed a contract with FPL (Florida Power and Light) to develop a solar thermal plant in Florida. I had a chance to read the press release that was sent out to FPL’s employees and I am taking I will believe it when I see it approach but I am hopeful it will turn into something good. On another good note FPL announced it would be spending 1.5 billion in the next seven years to develop new solar thermal plants in Florida and California. FPL already manages 7 plants now in the Mojave and is probably one of the best companies to take on new projects.
I am keeping my fingers crossed this will turn into something big. I still don’t really understand building a solar thermal plant in Florida but I am sure a lot smarter people than me have already figured how it is going to work. Florida, being the state that is probably going to be the most affected by rising sea levels, desperately wants to get into alternative energies but the problem is they don’t really have that many ways to go about it.
Solar thermal power is a good idea for Florida, but if they want a lot of it, don’t built the plants in Florida. Put them in the Mojave, and then create a HVDC transmission, as Vinod Khosla has mentioned.
It will be expensive, but the marginal cost of the infrastructure is low if they’re going to build dozens of GW. Putting dozens of GW in Florida will make the $/kWh astronomical. And the supply will be unreliable in Florida anyway.