The Enel Group plays a central role in the sustainability of Peru’s energy system, with more than 9 billion kWh of installed capacity and 26,661 kilometres of power lines.
The country has become an emerging economy and a strategic market for the Group, which will continue to invest in Peru, as declared by CEO Francesco Starace in his recent visit to South America, following the Italian delegation led by Prime Minister Matteo Renzi.
Enel plans to contribute to Andean country’s growth by implementing an open power strategy presented on November 18th at Enel’s Capital Markets Day.
This strategy includes the continuous updating and modernisation of power plants, aimed at increasing the efficiency of production systems. In Peru, Enel’s Global Generation business unit has recently completed its development plan and authorisation process for the repowering of the Malacas plant gas turbine, owned by the subsidiary Empresa Electrica de Piura S.A. (EEPSA) and located in the Talara region, on the northern coast of the country.
The project entails an expenditure of approximately USD 54 million and consists in the installation of a 51.8 MW open cycle gas turbine, called TG6, to replace the capacity of the three obsolete turbines (TG1, TG2 and TG3) that are currently installed in the plant. Construction will begin by the end of 2015, and the new plant will be operational in early 2017.
The project keeps with the strategic plan of Enel’s subsidiary EEPSA in northern Peru, where the Malacas plant constitutes one of the main hubs of the national electricity system.
‘Peru offers a virtuous example of how to manage expertise and competitiveness in the field of Global Generation,’ explained Enrico Viale, Director of Global Generation. 'Our assets in this country – including thermopower and hydropower generation – play a strategic role. Our plants feature high quality management: there are interesting ideas that we can implement in order to improve our global “fleet” of power plants. '
In addition to the technological modernisation of the plant, the Group has promoted a series of initiatives, aimed at the development of local communities through a Creating Shared Value plan. The plan focuses on the health and education of the local population, with the granting of scholarships for children and adolescents, the development of a nutrition program for school-aged children and the promotion of waste recycling practices.
This project complements other initiatives launched by the subsidiary Edegel in the Junín region in the Central Andes, where Enel’s sustainability team is carrying out the project “Promotion of health and the fight against child malnutrition”, which aims to improve the life expectancy of children in five of the area’s rural communities.