Site preparation work is under way at Chevron’s field in Coalinga, California, where 3,800 heliostats, each with two flat mirrors, will be installed across 40 hectares of land. The mirrors focus the sun’s energy on a boiler atop a central tower generating steam to inject into the well bore.
Coalinga produces a heavy oil. Injecting steam makes the oil less viscous and easier to extract, says Kim Copelin, spokesperson for Chevron Technology Ventures (CTV).
