Shepherd Energy · Western Australia

Firm clean power and process heat for the Pilbara

An Australian-controlled developer deploying proven, gigawatt-scale Chinese molten-salt tower CSP technology as dispatchable, round-the-clock power and high-temperature industrial heat.

A$240–450
Remote diesel cost / MWh
8–14 h
Thermal storage duration
~1.7 GW
Proven Chinese tower-CSP fleet
~A$144
Modelled CST+PV LCOE / MWh
The opportunity

The Pilbara's energy problem is duration, not daylight

WA mining and mineral processing face rising energy costs, mounting carbon liability, and a long-duration firming gap that short batteries cannot close. Cheap daytime solar is already solved — the hard part is firm power at 8pm, process steam at midnight, and stability in a weak, islanded grid.

Pilbara region, Western Australia Pilbara region, Western Australia
98%
of Australia's iron ore from the Pilbara
~40%
of WA's total emissions
98%
fossil-fuel powered today
A$240–450
per MWh for remote diesel
Our model

A proven technology, deployed with purpose

Track record

A proven, operating fleet

China's tower-CSP fleet represents approximately 1.7 GW across 27 commercial plants as of end-2025. These are not demonstration units — they are grid-connected plants with years of operating data behind them.

Reliability

Firm power, day and night

Molten-salt storage delivers 8–14 hours of dispatchable output. The steam turbine provides synchronous grid inertia — the kind of grid strength that PV and batteries cannot replicate.

Design

Built for the Pilbara

Dry-cooled from day one. PV + small battery + CST tower shaping firm 24/7 supply and process heat — matched to the region's arid conditions and high direct-normal irradiance.

Host first

Anchor to a creditworthy offtaker

We run an honest desktop screen before optimising anything. Technology configuration is selected once the host's duty profile is clear. No speculative builds.

Technology

From sunlight to dispatchable power

High-temperature solar heat captured by a heliostat field, stored in molten salt, and released on demand as firm power or process heat — day and night. The steam turbine provides synchronous grid inertia at no extra cost.

Molten-salt thermal storage
Best fit

Where CST delivers most value

Lithium processing Alumina refining Rare earths Iron ore & green iron (DRI) Remote mine microgrids High process-heat loads

"CST is not the cheapest daytime kilowatt-hour — PV is. For the specific job of firming a 24/7 industrial load and supplying high-temperature heat, nothing else does it more cheaply. If PV and batteries serve you best, we will say so."

Ready to explore a no-cost desktop screen?

CST benchmarked against PV, BESS, wind, gas and electrification — with a clear go / no-go verdict for your site.