Jaguar Energy Guatemala has announced that it won the international arbitration case against China Machine New Energy Corporation, which has to pay the former entity $149 million.
According to the company, as a result of the decision from the arbitral tribunal, the power plant based on coal will remain its property, and the Chinese company will have to pay $149 million.
Having delayed the launch of the coal plant due to problems in the turbines, Jaguar Energy plans to start commercial operation in the coming weeks.
Jaguar Energy's plant power which will generate electricity from coal will be ready to start trading, after authorities at Energuate verify the reinstallation of the two turbines that had problems and were revised in China.
The plant launched by Ingenio Magdalena in Retalhuleu has the capacity to generate up to 62 MW of energy from biomass and coal.
The plant called San Isidro will have the capacity to "... produce 220 tons of steam per hour, operating at 109 kg / cm2 and 540 degrees Celsius and 88.5% efficiency designed so that gases from the combustion process comply with environmental standards of the world bank. "
The company has said it is not ruling out expanding the capacity of power generation at the coal-based plant from 300 MW to 600 MW.
The announcement was made by the country manager of the company, Todd Clewett, who confirmed to Capital.com.pa that the land where the plant is located has enough to size double the floor space if required.
The plant, which is part of the Cobre Panama project, uses coal as a fuel source, and the company expects to start operation in 2017 to produce for all of the national electricity system.
The Wholesale Market Administrator of Guatemala granted the coal plant commercial and operational permission, days after Energuate cancelled its supply contract.
With the formal permission to operate as a generator granted by the Wholesale Market Administrator, Jaguar Energy is trying to revive the contract that Energuate canceled for not being ready to supply power from May 17.
The electricity generating plant based on coal did not start supplying energy on the date stated in the contract, therefore Energuate has canceled the contract and will be enforcing the guarantee.
Although the coal plant belonging to Jaguar Energy still has problems in testing and is not yet ready to start operating, Energuate has ruled out preparing another tender to replace it.
Although in February Energuate mentioned the possibility of convening a new tender to replace the power supply which the plant by Jaguar Energy should have started providing from June, now its director, Dimas Carranza, said that "...
The new delays in testing the 300 MW coal plant mean that it will not be ready to fulfill the contract obligations to start supplying energy on May 1.
For the third time a delay has been reported in testing synchronization of equipment installed in the plant with the National Interconnected System (SIN by its initials in Spanish) due to lack of technical coordination between the generator and the administration of the Wholesale Market.
After two years of negotiations, the Guatemalan government has agreed to eliminate the tariff of 5% on imports of bituminous coal from the South American country.
From a statement issued by the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Tourism of Colombia (Mincit):
This follows from the Decision No. 13 of 2015 of the Administrative Committee of the Free Trade Agreement in effect between Colombia and the North Triangle, through which it is established that the measure will be in effect from the first of March.
Although Jaguar Energy says it will be ready to provide power on May 1st, in line with the contract, the state electricity company is contemplating hiring a third party if the plant is delayed.
The odds that the plant will start commercial operations on May 1st are 50-50, therefore Energuate is evaluating getting an alternative supply from a third party.
An announcement has been made in Guatemala that the coal power plant will start operating partially in May, as it is estimated that only one of the two generating units will be ready by that date.
Star Energy, the firm responsible for overseeing the project, announced that there is little chance that the two generating units will be operational in May. However, the first unit will be contributing 140 MW to Energuate by that date.
Due to delays in several of the projects already awarded, the government is considering putting out to tender an additional 250 MW of power in the first half of the year.
It is expected that later this month there will be an announcement on whether the tender will be held, a decision which depends on the results of the evaluation of the second phase of the plant Jaguar Energy Guatemala, representing 150 MW, and the evaluation of small hydropower stations contemplated for the remaining 100 MW.
In the tender to supply 18 MW using small generating plants 18 offers were presented totaling 120 MW.
The first tender being held for small generators exceeded industry expectations. Currently the technical bids are being evaluated and it is expected that financial bids will be opened on the 12th of December so that the selected companies can begin providing energy between May 2015 and December 2016.
Avoiding the generation of power using fossil fuels is a necessary goal, but alleviating the energy poverty in which millions of Central Americans find themselves is a priority.
EDITORIAL
Bjorn Lomborg's article published in Laprensagrafica.com analyzes the difficult choice between taking measures to prevent global warming, and facilitating the use of cheap fossil fuels -carbon- for 1,200 million poor people in the world.
As part of the company's recapitalization plan, the Panamanian government will provide up to $48 million to the Bahía Las Minas project.
The state has had to adopt, for the third time in five years, an agreement to support the thermal electricity station and try move a complicated investment plan forward.
"With the 49 % stake held by the state , the government of Ricardo Martinelli pledged up to $48 million on a plan to recapitalize the company. " " ... Suez Energy International Luxembourg SA will have to provide up to 52 million dollars as the majority shareholder."