Enel Green Power is consolidating its presence in Chile, one of the most promising Latin American markets, with new plants online and others under construction, as well as supply contracts and funding agreements.
With plants under construction, supply contracts and funding agreements, Enel Green Power is growing at a rapid rate in Chile, one of the most promising markets in Latin America and where by 2025 the government aims to meet 20 percent of its energy needs through non-traditional sources such as wind and solar power.
The most recent achievement in this regard was the agreement signed with the Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria Chile for a $150million worth of investment over a five-year period, which will be used to finance planned investments in the country in that time. That agreement followed another that was signed in December with Danish Export Credit Agency (“EKF”) and Citi for €100million. This 12-year funding deal will be used to cover part of the investments for the Taltal and Valle de los Vientos wind farms.
The latter plant, which was put into service on 27 December in the country’s Antofagasta region, required a total investment of about $170million. It consists of 45 two megawatt wind turbines which can produce more than 200 gigawatt-hours per year.
In the same region construction of the 99MW Taltal wind farm, EGP’s largest plant in Chile, is ongoing. In the region of Atacama meanwhile the construction of EGP’s first PV solar facility in Chile, the 36MW Diego de Almagro, began in November. Both plants are connected to respective 20- and 15-year purchase contracts for the energy they produce.
EGP also has the Pullinque and Pilimaiquen plants facilities in the country, and soon the construction of the first geothermal plant in the whole of South America will begin in the Atacama desert, at a height of 4,400 metres above sea-level. It has also received authorisation to conduct exploratory operations underground that could bring about the realisation of plants with 100MW of capacity.