Latin American wind group: Brazil, Chile, Mexico to lead market

Brazil, Chile and Mexico will lead development of wind power projects in coming years thanks in large part to government support that laid the groundwork for the renewable energy, Mauricio Trujillo, executive director of the Latin America Wind Energy Association (Lawea), told BNamericas. Peru also has solid potential and in the short term could bring online 10% of the 5,000-6,000MW of capacity in the concession stage, Trujillo said in a telephone interview from his office in Guadalajara, Mexico. The Caribbean is also making strides in wind energy while Central America's Siepac grid will create a market for the renewable source, as neighboring countries could export wind power to the network. The 1,796km, 230kV Siepac line will connect Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama, allowing 300MW of transactions when it starts up this year. Argentina could also build at least 300MW of capacity, given government support, the Lawea director said. But Brazil, Chile and Mexico are advancing projects at the fastest rate in the region, he said, adding that southern Mexico is on track to develop 2,500MW of capacity by 2012. Efforts in Baja California state and the second stage of Oaxaca state development are less certain in the short term, according to Trujillo. Brazil's renewable promotion program Proinfa is behind wind's growth in the country, especially since the government started relaxing standards that forced companies to source parts domestically. The growing availability of turbines on the local market has also helped the situation, Trujillo said. Meanwhile the Chilean government's 5% target for renewable projects is boosting the wind sector, he said. The potential also exists to build wind farms near mining operations in the copper-rich country, allowing developers to save money on transmission lines. Government incentives still play an important role in wind energy, Trujillo said, adding that market conditions dictate whether subsidies or government targets are the best approach. Governments can also help the sector by lowering taxes for wind projects and making it easier for developers to access the grid. The potential for offshore wind farms is limited in Latin America given that opportunities still abound to build onshore projects, which are cheaper, Trujillo said. Based in Guadalajara, Lawea is a non-profit organization that has representatives in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Guatemala, Nicaragua, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, the UK and the US.