Our Mission

To deliver renewable energy technology with the power to transform world energy systems

What we offer?

Cost competitive, easy to construct, flexible, utility scale renewable energy power generation and storage technology, that can dispatch clean energy, on demand, 24 hours a day.

Vast Solar is an Australian company that has developed world-leading solar thermal storage technology, delivering low-cost renewable energy that is reliable, controllable and dispatchable. We are innovators in the field of concentrated solar thermal power (CSP). Since 2009 we have been inventing solutions to address the issues that have held back the adoption of CSP. Our CSP system, developed through fundamental research and elegant, cost effective engineering, sets new standards of price and performance.

Our Technology

Vast Solar’s CSP system is smart, modular and highly cost effective to construct and operate. Our technology includes novel heat collection and transfer technologies, along with integrated storage so that we can generate and then dispatch affordable renewable energy 24 hours a day. These features, along with advanced control systems, heliostat, tower and field design, uniquely position Vast Solar’s power technology within the CSP sector. Our elegant, clean, scalable power generation and storage system is competitive on performance and price not only with other renewable but also with fossil fuel power generation.

What drives us?

Ethical, professional determination and technical capability to deliver utility scale power generation with thermal storage. We make the cost of building CSP economic and we deliver new generation thermal storage so that renewable energy can be affordable and dispatchable. We are excited about sharing our technology with partners, energy providers and the communities they serve. We are proud to enable and help drive the change that we all need now – access to affordable, reliable, renewable energy.

How we do it?

We have developed and demonstrated technology for the world’s first modular CSP plant that uses liquid sodium as HTF at our 1MW CSP Pilot Plant. This plant was commissioned in June 2018. We develop CSP Plants and are currently working to develop a 50MW Solar Hybrid Plant (30MW CSP combined with 20MW PV). We partner with developers and utilities to configure scalable CSP plants that meet their unique market requirements. We bring our smart CSP engineering and design expertise coupled with our proven modular CSP approach and critical components. Vast Solar has developed a supply chain to deliver the critical components.

Low Cost, High Efficiency.

Cost

Modular array design utilises light weight and inexpensive materials. Prefabricated manufacturing techniques, robotic assembly and automated operating processes deliver rapid, low cost construction and enable cost effective ease of operation. Receiver maintenance is simple and does not require costly plant shutdowns.

Efficiency

Smart heliostat configuration in compact modular arrays maximises optical efficiency at rates higher than in central tower CSP plants. Proprietary distributed control over receivers enables the capture of more energy to realise higher operating temperatures to deliver greater power cycle efficiency.

Storage

The secret to Vast Solar’s highly efficient energy capture and storage system is the modularisation of solar collector arrays. The key enabler of this is the use of liquid sodium as the solar heat transfer fluid and Vast Solar is the clear world leader in the use of sodium for solar power applications.

Meet The Team

Our great team and business mission is lead by passionate professionals with international experience in engineering and technology commercialisation, structured finance, business development, management and communications. Smart, elegant technology and efficient solutions are what our business is all about and we strive to reflect this in everything we do. Our professional management team is lean, team oriented and always open to the innovative ideas our people, partners and those we do business with offer. (Click on portraits for Linked In further information)

Craig WoodChief Executive Officer

Craig possesses international experience in corporate management, structured finance and the energy and technology sectors. Prior to joining Vast Solar in 2015, he worked in London, New York, Sydney and Perth with Lehman Brothers, Archer Capital and Browne’s Dairy in senior executive operational roles. He has held directorships, CEO and CFO roles in diverse industrial and manufacturing organisations. Craig holds degrees in Mechanical Engineering (1st Hons) and Science from The University of Western Australia and Masters Degrees from the London Business School and the University of Oxford, where he was a Rhodes Scholar.

Kurt DrewesProject Director

Kurt is a CSP professional with extensive experience across a range of CSP technologies and roles in numerous countries over a decade. Prior to joining Vast Solar in early 2017, Kurt worked with ACWA as Project Director, Redstone, South Africa, as well as providing technical advice to ACWA’s Noor 3 project in Morocco. He has also worked with leading CSP firms in Spain and Germany in management and operational manufacturing roles. Kurt holds a Master of Business Administration from the Graduate School of Business, University of Cape Town, and a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of the Witswatersrand, South Africa.

Brian MenziesBusiness Development

Brian is one of the founding members of Vast Solar and today he leads the business research, development and analytics team. Prior to returning to Australia to help establish the Company, Brian worked as a business strategy consultant with Bain & Co in the United States, and as an IT consultant in New Zealand and the United Kingdom.
Brian has an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management (Northwestern) and a Bachelor of Science from the University of Canterbury, New Zealand.

Christina HallFinance

Christina brings extensive financial experience to the business having worked with PricewaterhouseCoopers for over 14 years to advise and assist business stakeholders to maintain and build enterprise value. She has worked across a variety of industries in Australia and the United Kingdom and specialised in financial and operational restructuring for over five years while working in London. Christina holds a Bachelor of Accounting from the University of Technology, Sydney, is a Chartered Accountant and a graduate from the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Anthea FawcettCorporate Affairs

Anthea has wide-ranging experience in sustainable design, policy development, communications and advocacy and has worked with organisations that include the EcoDesign Foundation, Planning NSW, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Engineers Australia and the University of Cape Town. She has worked in South Africa, South Korea and SE Asia and is a graduate of the University of Sydney, Bachelor of Arts (1st Hons) and the University of NSW (College of Fine Arts, Masters).

Attractive Economic Profile

Vast Solar has developed world-leading solar thermal storage technology with a cost structure significantly lower than any currently available global competitor.

Partners and Associates

Vast Solar is a small private company with an appetite for growth. Our innovation journey has been made possible by longsighted private investors, along with support from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) whose grant support for fundamental research has enabled us to realise our collective goal of bringing Vast Solar’s unique CSP system to market. University partners who have contributed or travelled with us on this journey include the Australian National University, the University of South Australia, the University of Adelaide and the University of New South Wales. Vast Solar is a member of the Australian Solar Thermal Research Initiative (ASTRI).