February 29, 2024

DAWN construction update: solar tower stands

In late 2022, Synhelion held a groundbreaking ceremony for its first industrial-scale demonstration plant, located in Jülich, Germany. Plant DAWN is a crucial step in Synhelion’s strategy to scale up its solar fuel technology. With this plant, the company demonstrates the robustness and economics of this technology at relevant scale.

Construction is progressing steadily, and more progress is visible day by day. Now, the solar tower has been erected. The tower of DAWN is about 20 meters high and houses Synhelion’s key innovations to produce solar fuel: the receiver, the reactor, and the thermal energy storage that enables cost-efficient operation around the clock. The tower is uniquely configured to facilitate efficient fuel production. Positioned facing north, its design minimizes shadow casting on the mirror field.

“I am very proud of our highly motivated and skilled team that is working full steam on the construction of plant DAWN. It is great to see steady progress on the construction site despite the current challenges in global supply chains. It’s a result of our great teamwork,” says Patrick Hilger, Managing Director, Synhelion Germany GmbH. “The construction and commissioning of our plant remain on an ambitious schedule, so further updates on plant DAWN will follow soon!”

The fuels produced by DAWN will be used for various showcases across the transportation sector to highlight the importance of sustainable fuels in the transportation sector’s transition to net-zero. Future solar fuel plants, such as Synhelion’s commercial solar fuel plant in Spain, will exceed the size of DAWN and offer significantly higher production capacity.