Ecuador seeks $1.9 billion in private power generation investment

• 3 years ago (2021-09-21)
• David Flin

Latin America 80 Transmission 191

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Ecuador’s government has announced that it will grant concessions for private companies to build and operate power generation plants and a new transmission system for the oil sector. The projects involved will require a total investment of $1.9 billion.

This arises as Ecuador’s state-owned power company CELEC is trying to repair idle thermal power plants to prepare them to provide backup electricity supply, with the Coca Codo Sinclair hydropower plant, which supplies one third of the country’s power, is under threat from river erosion in the Amazon region.

The government is seeking to find developers for a number of renewable projects with a combined capacity of 500 MW of new generating capacity. These projects will require a total investment of around $875 million.

Ecuador is also seeking companies to develop a new 400 MW natural gas-based power plant and a 290 km transmission line to connect its oil industry to the national grid. These projects are expected to require $600 million and $386 million in investment, respectively.

These projects are scheduled to begin operating between 2024 and 2026.