icaragua's $95 Million Wind Farm to Start in January

Country's first wind farm -- by US-Nicaraguan company -- will produce 40 megawatts of electricity.

MANAGUA -- The first wind farm for producing 40 megawatts of electricity, built at a cost of $95 million in southern Nicaragua, will start operations on Jan. 4, an executive of Amayo, the company that owns the project, announced Saturday.

The local press reported Saturday that 18 of the 19 wind turbines 100 meters (328 feet) tall of the facility are already completely installed in the province of Rivas, 128 kilometers (80 miles) south of Managua, according to Amayo manager Sean Porter.

The executive said that the 19th wind turbine only needs to have its propeller installed to begin functioning in the next few days.

Each of these wind turbines produces 2.1 megawatts, Porter said, adding that the 40 megawatts that they will produce together will be connected to the national grid on Jan. 4, and will provide service for 325,000 homes that consume an average of 150 kilowatts per month.

According to Porter, the cost of generating electricity with wind is 8.6 cents of a dollar per kilowatt, while with petroleum derivatives it is 18 cents.

This project by the Managua-based U.S.-Nicaraguan company Amayo is partially financed by a loan from the Central American Bank for Economic Integration, or BCIE, for $71.2 million.

Nicaragua's system for generating electricity currently produces some 500 megawatts, of which 70 percent is generated with bunker fuel and diesel.

 

Source: Latin American Herald Tribune

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