Manzanaras Solar Updraft Tower Ruins

The Manzanaras Solar Updraft Tower is the prototype solar updraft facility located near Manzanares in Castilla-La Mancha, Spain, built as an experimental demonstration in the early 1980s. It was constructed to test the solar updraft power generation concept on a real scale.

The installation’s most prominent feature is a tall concrete tower roughly 195 metres in height that acted as the chimney creating an updraft of heated air. Surrounding the tower is a circular collector area covered by a low transparent roof that heated air beneath it and fed the tower-driven airflow to turbines.

The project operated as a demonstration to evaluate the technical viability of solar chimney power plants and provided data and engineering lessons for subsequent designs and proposals.

The site is located near the town of Manzanares in central Spain’s Castilla-La Mancha region and is visible from nearby roads and the surrounding plain.

• Prototype history: Constructed as an experimental prototype in the early 1980s, it demonstrated the solar updraft concept using a tall tower and a greenhouse-like collector roof.

What to See#

• Concrete tower: The central concrete tower of the prototype solar updraft facility, approximately 195 metres tall, which functioned as the chimney driving convective airflow through the collector.
• Solar collector: The circular solar collector area surrounding the tower where sunlight heats the air beneath a low, transparent roof to create the updraft that powers turbines in the tower.

The site is in Castilla-La Mancha and is accessed by regional roads from nearby towns and the A-3/M- roads depending on the exact location. Driving is usually required; consult local maps for precise access and any visitor procedures.

• If visiting the solar updraft tower site, arrange a tour with the operating company or local authority - engineering installations often restrict public access for safety.
• Bring binoculars to appreciate the scale; towers can be several hundred meters tall and dominate the flat landscape.
• Expect wind and cooler temperatures near the tower base; dress in layers.