Last December, eSolar’s Sierra SunTower solar power plant won Power Engineering Magazine’s “Best Renewable and Sustainable Project” award for 2009. The distinguished award is one of four the magazine gives out each year to projects in one of the following categories: gas-fired, coal-fired, nuclear and renewable.

Located 60 miles north of downtown Los Angeles in Lancaster, California, the 5-megawatt commercial solar plant began operation in August of last year. It’s the first of its kind in California, a state that continues to gain recognition as a hotbed for solar energy innovation. The SunTower is unique because of its ability to transform the sun’s rays to generate super-heated, high-pressure steam — we’re talking temperatures upwards of 800° F and a pressure of 900 pounds-per-square inch. The steam is then used to drive a turbine, which in turn generates electricity for Southern California Edison (SCE), a northern branch of Edison International that provides electricity to central, coastal and southern California. The plant is a major component to Lancaster’s 2030 General Plan, which aims to create fertile ground for renewable energy projects.

According to Pasadena-based eSolar, the plant addresses many of the issues that have hindered growth in solar thermal power generation, including challenges relating to environmental sustainability, cost and speed of development. California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger pointed to the new eSolar plant as an example of “carbon-free, cost-efficient energy that can be used around the world.”

In related news, not only is eSolar racking up the awards for its new solar thermal projects, it’s also gaining the attention (and investment) of many heavy hitters in the financial world. As relayed yesterday by MarketWire, eSolar topped the Wall Street Journal’s recently released list of venture-backed clean technology companies. eSolar came in at number three.

And, finally, from the GetSolar archives, be sure to check out the following post (from April 2008) about Google’s initial investment in eSolar. The post is called “Large Corporations Investing in Solar.”