The company aims to develop a low cost alternative to fossil fuels through a combination of small heliostats, modular architecture, and a high-precision sun-tracking system.

In the direct-steam configuration, each module comprises over 20,000 square meters [4] of heliostats arranged in two subfields – north and south – which track the sun and concentrate solar energy to the tower mounted receiver.

[4] In the summer of 2009, eSolar unveiled the 5 MW Sierra SunTower plant, a commercial facility in Lancaster, California that demonstrated the company's technology.

Sierra SunTower is interconnected to the Southern California Edison (SCE) grid and, in spring 2010, it was the only commercial CSP tower facility in North America.

The focused heat converted feedwater piped to the receivers into superheated steam that drove a reconditioned 1947 GE turbine generator to produce electricity.

[citation needed] The 5 MW output from Sierra SunTower reduced CO2 emissions by 7,000 tons per year, an amount equivalent to planting 5,265 acres (21.31 km2) of trees, removing 1,368 automobiles from the road, or saving 650,000 gallons of gasoline.

With the support from the U. S. Department of Energy, the companies try to come up with a design for plants with flexibility of the sizes from 50 to 200 MW by replicating the basic module without a redesign.

Each module uses hexagonal heliostat field to reflect sunlight to the salt-in-tube external thermal receiver on top of the tower at the center.

[8] NRG Energy, Inc. partnered with eSolar in February 2009 to develop solar power plants with a total generation capacity of up to 500 MW at sites within California and across the Southwestern United States.

The plants will be co-located with biomass electricity generation facilities, together eliminating 15 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually.

Under the partnership, eSolar will provide solar field and receiver technology, while Ferrostaal will supply the power block, act as general contractor, and manage financing activities.

[14] In December 2014, eSolar was awarded a commercial contract by Aalborg CSP to provide a solar collector system (SCS) solution for the Sundrop Farms Port Augusta expansion project.

The award recognizes eSolar's technological innovation and global commitment to delivering a clean, low-cost energy alternative to fossil fuels.

[18] An interview with Bill Gross is featured on YouTube where he responds to four questions posed to each of the World Economic Forum's Technology Pioneer 2010 winners.

The award recognized eSolar's achievements in the clean energy industry by naming Sierra SunTower an exceptional breakthrough in the commercialization of solar thermal technology.