This is a new system where giant movable mirrors called heliostats are used to reflect the sun?s rays and concentrate the heat onto a vessel containing water or another liquid, similar to oil. This creates steam to turn turbines and generate electricity. The best place for this technology to be used is in the desert.

* Within 6 hours deserts receive more energy from the sun than the whole of the world?s population uses in a year. Every year 1 square km of desert receives an amount of solar energy equivalent to 1.5 million barrels of oil. This means that only 1% of the world?s deserts would need to be used to meet the world?s current energy needs.

* According to DESERTEC, 90% of people live within 2,700 km of a desert and could be supplied with solar electricity from there. Developing countries such as China and India could avoid the use of fossil fuels in their development by moving straight over to this technology.

* It is possible to store the solar heat in melted salts so electricity can still be generated when it is not sunny.

* Another advantage of CSP is that sea water could be desalinated to provide fresh drinking water in arid regions using the waste heat from CSP plants. It could also be used to water plants for food which could be grown in the shaded areas underneath the mirrors.

There are 4 main systems of Concentrated Solar Power Technology:

* The Solar Tower of Spain could provide enough energy for 600,000 people. It?s a giant concrete tower, 40 storeys high surrounded by 624 heliostats at the base all focused on the top of the tower where it can heat up water pipes, to create steam which is blasted through turbines.

* Trough Systems use curved mirrors to focus light onto a tube containing oil or a similar fluid that carries the heat to a place where it can be used to create steam and generate electricity.

* Frensel Mirrors work in the same way as the trough system but instead these are are long, flat mirrors placed at different angles. Sometimes they are focused onto photo-voltaic solar panels.

* Dishes of mirrors track the sun (a bit like a giant television satellite dish) which track the sun. They each have a Stirling engine at their focal point which works by using an external heat source (unlike a standard internal-combustion engine which may run off petrol or diesel) to convert the heat energy into electricity.