New Hampshire, USA --
The U.S. market for wind energy is something of a contradiction: it's
one of the world's larger markets and fastest growing with its own
supply chain, yet it's still heavily reliant upon a production tax
credit, which was renewed at the last minute last December (yet late
with enough uncertainty to chill many projects in the pipeline), and
this time its renewal is even less certain.
To the south, though, is another country and market that's also
displaying good growth in wind energy. Mexico has added an average of
300 MW annually for the past four years and should tally nearly 1.6 GW
overall next year, representing three percent of the grid capacity, according to a presenter at last month's Renewable Energy World North America/Power-Gen International Conference in Orlando, Florida.
Mexico's wind energy is largely concentrated in the Oaxaca state with
"very good class 6 and class 7 winds," meaning areas with wind energy
density of 600-1600+ W/m2 at 50 meters, though good winds can
be found in Baja California and Tamauilipas, said Agustin Valdivia of
MPR Associates. Gamesa and Acciona dominate the market though GE is
seeking to expand there. The nation's wind energy development pipeline
was around 2.5 GW at the end of last year, he noted.
Among the challenges to wind energy expansion in Mexico is the lack
of grid information made available by state-owned utility Comisión
Federal de Electricidad (CFE). CFE controls interconnection substations,
though, and wants to get those right, Valdiva noted. Also a lack of
meteorological stations near potential wind sites can hamper early
planning, and land availability is complicated due to loosely defined
municipal boundaries. Theft of copper components also is a problem.
On the plus side there are wind incentives in the form of accelerated
equipment depreciation and an "energy bank," he noted. CFE's high
tariffs range from $97-$245/MWh, self-supply deals can be created
including through consortiums of independent power producers and
offtakers, and 15-20 year power-purchase agreements (PPA) are similar to
those in the U.S.
IN THE NEWS
Geothermal Project Funding for Costa Rica: Costa Rica has secured two significant funding sources for development and deployment of geothermal energy. The Japan International Cooperation Agency
(JICA) has pledged a ¥56 million (roughly U.S. $560 million) to
continue backing geothermal development projects for state-owned
Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad (ICE) in San José. ICE itself
claims it has received another $70 million from the European Investment Bank.
The first project to be funded will be the 55-MW Pailas II geothermal
plant at the Rincon de la Vieja volcano in the northwestern province of
Guanacaste, with estimated cost of $333 million. Also tapping into the
funding will be two similar-size (~55-MW) geothermal plants in the area,
Borinquen I and II. JICA previously extended a loan to Costa Rica
nearly 30 years ago for the country's first geothermal project, the Miravalles Geothermal Power Project,
and a year ago they signed a memorandum of understanding to continue
cooperating to promote geothermal development. Costa Rica is one of
eight nations that are now or nearly 100 percent using renewable energy, with most of its ~2.7 GW of power generation capacity coming from hydropower.
Enel Gets Busy in Chile:
Enel Green Power says it is planning three new power plants totaling
161 MW capacity in Chile's Central Region Transmission Network (SIC).
The two solar PV plants and one wind farm will be built and come online
by the first half of 2015, at an estimated total investment of $320
million. Power from the three plants, plus an unidentified fourth
project already in operation, will be sold at a rate of $128/MWh. The
company also has begun construction of what it claims is Chile's largest solar PV plant,
the 36-MW Diego de Almagro in the Atacama region roughly 950 km north
of Santiago. The $60 million plant will use about 225,000 "mostly
thin-film" modules from 3Sun, the joint venture between Enel, Sharp, and STMicroelectronics. The plant has a 15-year PPA with the SIC. Enel Green Power already was completing construction at its second Chilean wind farm,
the 90-MW Valle de los Vientos site, less than a year after opening its
90-MW Talinay farm in central Chile. A third farm sized at 99-MW near
Taltal is under construction.
GE Wins Big Wind Business in Brazil: Brazil's recent A-3 auction
which saw 867 MW of wind energy sold for than $7 billion sold was a
boon for GE, which won 545 MW of orders for wind turbines spanning 26
wind farms, according to the company. The company already has 1 GW of
installed wind capacity in Brazil and is installing another 400 MW now.
U.S. Ex-Im Bank's First Costa Rican Wind Deal:
The U.S. Export-Import Bank has approved a $61.1 million direct loan to
a subsidiary of Central American wind developer Globeleq Mesoamerica
Energy to purchase Gamesa wind turbine generators, Ex-Im Bank's first
wind transaction in Costa Rica. Gamesa's tech is chosen for the 50-MW
Orosi wind farm project in Guanacaste.
Ecopower Makes Chile Move:
Ecopower SAC says it is filing for permits to develop a 100-MW, $250
million wind farm in Los Lagos, dubbed the Chiloé wind farm, which would
begin operations in January 2016. The company had temporarily withdrawn its Environmental Impact Assessment of the Chiloé project earlier this summer to take a closer look at studies of tourism and community impacts.
Honda Carmaker Building Brazilian Wind Farm:
Honda Energy do Brasil, a subsidiary of the Japanese carmaker, plans to
build a 27-MW nine-turbine wind farm in Rio Grande do Sul by next fall.
The ~100 million reais plant would generate 95,000 MWh/year, which
would equal the company's electricity needs for auto production in the
country.
Tecnova, Sky Solar Deal for Uruguayan Solar Farm:
Tecnova Renovables and China's Sky Solar Group, through their local
joint venture Radition, have committed to build a $20 million 8-MW solar
PV plant on 17 acres in an industrial park in the municipality of
Paysandú. Tecnova recently opened a 155-kW PV site in Dolores and is
currently working on a 2-MW project in Constancia.
Ocean Wave Power in Brazil:
Furnas, Coppe/UFRJ (Federal University of Rio de Janeiro) and startup
Seahorse Wave Energy reportedly want to launch a prototype wave energy
system off Rasa Island, across from Ipanema beach, sometime in 2015.
Details are scarce, but the project is said to entirely use
Brazilian-developed technology, and apparently displace a diesel
generator on Rasa Island used by the Navy to power a lighthouse and some
houses.
A DEEPER LOOK
Central America's Renewables Push:
The Thomson Reuters Foundation takes a closer look at renewable energy
penetration in Central America, where it accounts for nearly two-thirds
of utility-supplied electricity. Smaller-scale efforts are emphasized,
including a gravity-powered micro-hydropower plant on the El
Salvador/Honduras border.
ON THE HORIZON
Solar Auction Proposed for Brazil's Pernambuco State: Brazil's Pernambuco state plans to auction
180 MW of solar farm output on December 20, reportedly the nation's
first solar-only auction. Bids will start at a ceiling of 250 Brazilian
reais/MWh (about U.S. $109/MWh), about twice the average pricing (124.43
reais/MWh) for wind energy in Brazil's recent A-3 auction — a pricing
that was easily low enough to price solar out of the bids — though
rebates will knock those solar auction prices down to about 165
reais/MWh. The Department of Water Resources and Energy will coordinate
the auction, which is part of the state government's PE Sustentável
(Sustainable PE) program to support the local solar industry. The deadline to register for the solar auction is December 13.
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http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2013/12/latin-america-report-gauging-mexicos-wind-energy-market
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