Solarpack sees Ecuador plant online in 2022

Spanish company Solarpack expects operations of the El Aromo solar project in Ecuador to begin next year, according to CEO Pablo Burgos.

In December, Ecuador awarded the solar developer a concession to build and operate the 200MW plant in Manabí province that Solarpack envisions at 259MW.

Read Two Spanish companies will assume the concession of the Villonaco II and III wind projects and El Aromo photovoltaic projects and Solarpack wins a 20-year long PPA contract in Ecuador for a 258 MW solar PV project

The Vizcaya-based group has not moved El Aromo into its pipeline (above 90% probability of completion) from backlog (above 50% probability of completion) pending closing of the investment agreement and PPA.

State power transmission company Transelectric and Solarpack met in January to begin coordination of the future park’s connection to the national grid.

Meanwhile, Transelectric selected ABSEG Seguridad y Ambiente as the top ranked bidder from 12 participants in the call to prepare the EIS for the dispatch component of El Aromo and the 110MW Villonaco II and III wind project.

During Solarpack’s 2020 results presentation, Burgos also said that the company expects order intake from Colombia to materialize between this year and next.

In Colombia, Solarpack has 257MW in the pipeline and 178MW in identified opportunities.

Elsewhere in the region, the company has 76MW under construction in Chile where it already operates 153MW and has 267MW in the pipeline and 567MW in identified opportunities; and in Peru, 28MW in operation and 351MW in the pipeline.

The CEO highlighted the battery energy storage component of the 4MW San Marcos project (pictured) under construction in northern Chile that will be used as a pilot project to determine the feasibility of expanding the use of these systems.