El Salvador is already generating energy through the wind

The wind turbines are ready to work. The generation of energy throug wind won’t be something El Salvador will envy.

The Ventus eolic Project, property of Tracia Network Corporation, a company that operates two eolic parks in Guatemala and Nicaragua.

The mounting has finished and it´s expected to have culminated the commissioning (testing stage) of the last wind turbine for the first weeks of March 2021.

The Project has 15 wind turbines of 120 meters high (the highest of the region), each has 3 blades of 67 meters, per year, it will generate 170 gigavatios/hour (GWh).

The eolic park is located in Municipality of Metapán, Santa Ana department.

By venturing into this type of project, the country will be producing an extra 54 megawatts (MW), through wind energy, which will avoid the emission of 200,000 tons of CO2 per year.

In addition, the work will help reduce dependence on fossil fuels, offer the country stability in the price of energy and diversify the energy matrix.

The company indicated that the project does not have a specific sector to which it will be injected, but that the energy generated is delivered and distributed through the national electricity grid, benefiting the entire country.

Initially, the investment estimate for the project was $ 73.23 million. «The amount of the investment is considerable, and contributes to the indicators of foreign direct investment in the country. This investment is a real sign of the confidence that El Salvador is generating at the regional and international level, ”said the project manager.

At the time of the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the infrastructure had an approximate progress of 45%, but then it experienced a delay in the activities of unloading, transportation and assembly of the main components of the park, including wind turbines and other equipment.

Upon completion of construction, Ventus will have the installed capacity necessary to supply the demand of 100,000 Salvadoran homes. The construction of the park has generated more than 1,300 direct jobs during the construction phase, and another 20 when it begins its operation phase.

The company indicated that they are open to future investments, specifically in the energy sector, in case there is a commercial opportunity that gives it viability to finance them, since they are long-term and require energy sales contracts in the same terms.