Whalen says SolarReserve hopes to start construction on a 100-megawatt project near Tonopah, Nev. by the end of this year.

FORBES: Solar Thermal Hopefuls Make Their Case, Battle For Financing

One winter morning, Robbins and I drove four and a half hours north from Las Vegas, through the desert, to the Tonopah Conservation Camp, a minimum-security prison, where a pickpocket named Gary Scott was serving time.

NEWYORKER: A Pickpocket??s Tale