MPX postpones Pecém II, Parnaíba I thermo startups

Brazilian power firm MPX has been granted approval by national power regulator Aneel to delay the startup of its 365MW Pecém II thermoelectric plant to June this year, the company said in a statement. The coal-fired plant had been expected to begin operating by the end of the first quarter along with the second generating unit at the adjacent Pecém I facility. Both projects are located at the Pecém industrial port complex in Brazil's northeastern state of Ceará. Aneel also approved an April 1 startup for MPX's 676MW Parnaíba I thermoelectric plant in Maranhão state. The facility was synchronized to the national grid on January 20 and is currently operating in test mode. The Parnaíba I plant forms part of the 3.72GW Parnaíba thermoelectric complex in the country's northeast. MPX did not give reasons for the project delays. Aneel says 13 new thermoelectric plants will begin operating in the country by mid-year. The projects include MPX's Maranhão V (338MW), Maranhão IV (338MW), Porto de Itaqui (360MW), Nova Venécia (176MW) and Pecém II (365MW) in addition to the Pecém I (360MW) expansion.