Concentrated solar power company (CSP) Vast has announced a partnership with Spanish engineering company CYD to model molten salt tank performance as the VS1 project progresses.

VS1 is a 30 megawatt/ 288 megawatt hour CSP project in Port Augusta, South Australia, using Vast’s proprietary, modular tower CSP v3.0 technology and designed to have over eight hours of thermal energy storage.

The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) has approved up to $65 million in funding for VS1, Vast’s first utility-scale project.

CYD is working with Vast on early design work on VS1, and using its first-of-its-kind “Avatar Model” to simulate construction and operation of thermal energy storage tanks that contain molten salt at high temperatures.

Molten salt is used to transfer and store and thermal energy in solar power plants.

“It provides an opportunity to implement learnings at an early-stage to ensure the optimal performance of thermal energy storage systems,” explained CYD’s Sergio Dávila in a statement on Friday.

Avatar uses a virtual model or dynamic digital twin aiming to create the exact dimensions of VS1’s thermal energy storage system, and allows for testing and simulation under different conditions.

“The Avatar Model’s holistic approach to the design, manufacture, construction and operation of molten salt tanks will further strengthen VS1,” said Craig Wood, Vast’s CEO.

“This innovative approach to building CSP projects is a big step forward for Vast and the whole industry.”