The design of a beam-down solar power plant represents a very complex problem, being its performance dependent on many interrelated parameters. A systematic analysis of these parameters is proposed in the present study. The effect of the hyperboloid eccentricity on both the sunshape and the size of the heliostats is analyzed. Optimal values of the characteristic parameters of the compound parabolic concentrator are also proposed and on the basis of these considerations, extensive calculations are presented to evaluate yearly solar power collection. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.