Enel begins construction of 100 MW solar power plant in Chile

Italian energy company Enel Green Power has begun construction of two photovoltaic plants in northern Chile, which will have a total capacity of 100 MW.

At a cost of $110 million, the 60 MW Lalackama plant is expected to be Enel Green Power’s largest solar installation. Upon completion and commissioning of all phases of the plant, the plant is expected to generate up to 160 gigawatt-hours of electricity per year – enough to meet the energy needs of some 90,000 Chilean households.



The 40 MW Chañares solar plant will be located next to the 36 MW Diego de Almagro solar farm, which is Enel Green Power’s first project in Chile. As expected, the cost of construction of the plant will be $ 70 million. The solar plant will be capable of generating up to 94 gigawatt-hours of electricity per year, once the plant is at full capacity – the equivalent of the electricity needs of approximately 53,000 Chilean households. The plant is expected to be put into operation approximately in late 2014, early 2015.

The result of the construction of the two plants will avoid emissions of about 160,000 tons of carbon dioxide.

The projects have contracts for the sale of electricity produced on a regulated market. The contracts were awarded in a tender from Chile’s Central Interconnected System last November, where the projects were bypassed by 26 electricity distributors.

The $110 million, 60 MW Lalackama plant is expected to be Enel Green Power’s largest solar plant.

Additionally, in Chile, Enel Green Power owns and operates the Talinay and Valle de los Vientos wind farms (both have 90 MW of installed electricity capacity), and is currently building its largest Taltal wind farm, worth $190 million with a total capacity of 99 MW. The company is also exploring a range of geothermal energy offerings with a generation potential of more than 100 MW.

In Latin America, Enel Green Power also operates many renewable power plants in countries such as Mexico, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Panama and Brazil, with a total installed capacity of more than 1,250 MW.

Source: aenergy.ru