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 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.
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.
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.
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."
A request by sugar mills to equate the prices of energy produced from bagasse with that generated by coal has been rejected.
Guatemala's sugar mills asked that within their cost methodology from May 1st 2014 to April 30th 2015 for biomass generation to be indexed to the price of Puerto Bolivar coal (Colombia). However, the National Energy Commission (CNEE) rejected the request.
The company is putting out to tender electromechanical and construction works, having canceled the contract with China Machine New Energy.
In mid-February, it will be known if in 6 months the Jaguar project will begin tests on conveyor belts, the turbine and the generator of the first unit of the plant.
"... there is a schedule for 20 tenders for electromechanical works and a tender will be launched for the construction of a warehouse for materials, parts and equipment, which was stopped after Jaguar Energy Guatemala (JEG) terminated the contract with China Machine New Energy Corp (CMNC ) ".
The Chinese construction company building a power plant for Jaguar Energy was fired for demanding additional payments of $1.5 billion.
In a similar story to what is happening in the Expansion of the Panama Canal, where the construction consortium is demanding payment for overruns of $1.6 billion, the construction of the power plant for Jaguar Energy in Guatemala has stopped, because the Chinese company China Machine New Energy Corporation (CMNC) "threatened to suspend the progress of the project if JEG did not accept their claim for over $1.5 billion, which represents three times the value of the construction contract."
The construction of the Jaguar Energy power plant has been delayed by eight months because of severe conflict with the Chinese construction company.
Eight months after the agreed period for delivery of the project by the companies China Machine New Energy Corp. (CMNC) and Jaguar Energy Guatemala (Jaguar Energy), in charge of the construction of the power plant based on coal with a capacity of 300 MW in Escuintla, the work has bee halted.
An evaluation is being made on whether to raise from 250 MW to 400 MW the PG3 tender in order to compensate for the delay in the project by Jaguar Energy, projected to be 600 MW for this year.
The Ministry of Energy and Mines and the National Electric Energy Commission are looking at increasing the energy in the PEG 3 tender from 250 MW to 400 MW. The contest will take place between April and June.
Jaguar Energy Guatemala has decided to terminate the contract with the Chinese construction company responsible for the work for the generation of 300 Mw.
José Sarmiento, manager of JEG told Prensalibre.com that "the decision was made based on the same terms of the contract, and is the failure of the Chinese company to deliver the plant in operation in May 2013 and other arrears which have led to Energuate and its distributors (Deocsa and Deorsa) paying out $36 million to date. In total, the guarantees are $73 million."
Cementera is inaugurating works in a power plant based on coal with a capacity to generate 60 MW per year.
Laprensa.hn reports: "The project, called Bijao Electric Company (BECO-60), is valued at $125 million and is located in the municipality of Choloma, northern department of Cortés ...".
The Honduran companies Cementos del Norte and Cementos Progreso in Guatemala are the entities promoting this project.
The four plants in operation in Guatemala increased their share to 22% of the total, up from 15% a year ago.
According to data from the Wholesale Market Administrator (AMM), the Ministry of Energy and Mines and the Association of Independent Cogenerators (ACI), the country has four active coal plants, with an effective power of 284 MW, plus 6 under construction, which will provide 600 MW.