Top to private electricity generation frustrates 81 projects

This year was reached limit of 15% allowed to non state firms

December 15th,2014

A total of 81 private companies await slated to be chosen by ICE and sell its energy from renewable plants.

But today, this probability is almost zero.

Pending the 81 will be useless until the Costa Rican Electricity Institute (ICE) no new contracts out to tender the purchase, and that will not happen in the coming years-at least not before 2019-.

Why? The 7200 Act (which authorizes particular generation) provides that private can not provide more than 15% of the energy of the National Electricity System (SEN). This 2014, after 24 years of entering SEN, reached the top 28 firms.

Hoping to increase their participation was buried days ago, after the executive and discarded ICE requesting Bill Contingency Electric. This text was intended to raise the ceiling of 15% to 30%, and allow each plant exceed 20 MW.

The rationale of the government was that plants contracted and operating (public and private) have covered the electricity demand until at least 2019.

To spare. In the waiting list for eligibility ICE today include 32 hydroelectric projects; 25 wind; 19 solar-five municipal solid waste or biomass (the latter are exempt from caps by law).

These 81 projects would add a capacity of 1,207 megawatts (MW), nearly half of the installed capacity with currently available to the country, 2,776 MW.

Your offer would be sufficient to power about 2 million households, nearly double those in Costa Rica (1.2 million, according to the Housing Promotion Foundation).

That fourfold the power of water plant Reventazón, the largest capacity in the country.

Each of these plants provide employment to about 25 people, according to Mario Alvarado, chief of the Costa Rican Association of Power Producers (ACOP).

"No limits, private could have much more range in type and size. Interest in clean energy and persists it is competition and the best is chosen, would lower rates, "he said.

Osvaldo Durán, representative of the Conservation Federation of Costa Rica, the waiting list is evidence that energy "is a fabulous business that has made wealthy private firms". And he added: "What enabled the country is flat auction. We will not approve the private and participation; 7200 Act must be repealed. Are unnecessary; even 28 could be replaced private ".

Read more: "La Nación"