The first Senvion-supplied turbines at the 170MW Sarco wind farm in Chile’s Atacama region have started operation.
Aela Energia, the wind farm’s owner, is injecting power into the grid gradually, one turbine at a time or in groups.
Sarco general manager Jose Luis Munoz said: “Reaching this point of the project has been a challenge that would certainly not have been possible without the commitment of the entire team and our contractors: Mainstream Chile, in charge of construction management; CJR, in charge of the construction of civil works; and Senvion, by supplying and assembling the turbines.”
Sarco, located in the Freirina municipality, comprises 50 93 metre-high turbines. The power generated is transported to the Maitencillo substation, where it is injected into the National Electrical System (SEN).
Connecting the wind farm required the “energisation of the wind farm’s substation and a 71km long transmission line”, a process which has involved months of preparation and testing with the “complexity associated with coordinating several key players to meet the standards required by the National Electrical Coordinator,” said Munoz.
The transmission company, the communications company, the turbine supplier, the National Electrical Coordinator, and the wind farm were all involved in the energising process, according to Munoz.
Mainstream technical director Diego Cornejo said: “We are very proud of the teamwork that achieved the wind farm’s start of operations.
“Countless engineering and construction hours were invested in recent months with the aim to inject clean and safe energy into the National Electrical System and thus contribute to Chile’s 100% renewable energy matrix.”
Aela Energia is owned by a joint venture between Actis (60%), a global fund with energy investments in emerging countries, and Mainstream Renewable Power (40%), a global wind and solar development company.
Together with Sarco Aela Energia is completing the construction of the Aurora wind farm in Chile’s Llanquihue municipality, with a 129MW capacity, which is already injecting energy into the SEN.
Aela also operates the Cuel wind farm in Chile.