Chile watch: US$25mn cogen EIA, US$176mn substations EPC, 6.8MW hydro EIA

Food ingredient company Orafti filed an EIA with Chile's environmental evaluation service (SEA) to modify the US$25mn project to add a biomass-coal cogeneration plant at its inulin facility near the municipality of Pemuco in southern region VIII. The plant, which will boast a 60MW thermal and 12MW electric power capacity, will now be added to the two existing units that run on natural gas and diesel rather than replacing one of the units. The biomass will come from local forestry operations and the coal will be imported. The company only foresees two of the three units operating at any one time. Construction is slated to begin in June and last until October 2014, according to the environmental document. *** Colombian transmission group ISA's Chilean subsidiary InterChile signed a US$176mn contract with Siemens for substations on Chile's central SIC grid, according to an InterChile filing with local securities regulator SVS. The turnkey contract is for engineering, equipment supply, construction and commissioning of the four substations for the company's first three transmission projects in Chile. The 500kV double circuit lines will connect the Cardones, Maitencillo, Pan de Azúcar and Polpaico substations. In October grid regulator CDEC-SIC granted ISA contracts to develop approximately 750km of transmission line projects into which InterChile plans to invest close to US$1bn, according to a previous ISA release. *** And authorities in central region IX have begun evaluating a 6.8MW hydro project's EIA. Chilean hydro developer Aaktei's US$13.6mn project is planned for the Huichahue and Calbuco rivers 60km west of the regional capital Temuco. The project will be made up of two run-of-the-river plants connected to the SIC grid via a 23kV line.