Concentrating solar power (CSP) technologies (CSP)

Any of a family of solar energy technologies that reflect and concentrate the sun's energy to produce heat that is subsequently used to produce steam to power a steam turbine-generator (STG), or drive a reciprocating engine, to produce electricity. There are three different types of CSP systems: parabolic trough systems, power tower systems, and solar dish engine systems. Parabolic trough and power tower systems convert sunlight to heat to produce steam, while the solar dish engine system converts sunlight to heat to drive a reciprocating engine.