eSolar, manufacturer of scalable, modular solar power collection plants, reported today the signing of an exclusive agreement with the ACME Group, one of India’s leading environmentally-conscious energy companies.

eSolar utilizes specialized solar thermal energy technology to derive power from the sun. Traditional solar power uses costly photovoltaic panels to convert the sun’s light directly into electricity. eSolar’s lesser-known thermal method uses concentrated sunlight to heat water, the steam from which then powers a turbine generator. This cost-effective technology has made eSolar one of the first companies to allow solar energy to compete with fossil fuels.

The liscensing deal will allow ACME to construct up to one gigawatt (a billion watts) worth of solar thermal energy units in India over the next decade, in exchange for an immediate equity investment in eSolar in the amount of $30 million.

This adds to eSolar’s already impressive list of investors, which include Idealab, Google, Oak Investment Partners, and most recently, NRG Energy. These visionary companies believe in eSolar’s methods, giving rise to the notion that solar thermal energy, and indeed outfits like eSolar that facilitate its proliferation, very well may be the wave of the future.

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