Status Under construction Construction began May 2014 | Type CSP | |
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Official name Planta Solar Cerro Dominador Owner(s) EIG Global Energy Partners | ||
Cerro Dominador Solar Power Plant (Spanish: Planta Solar Cerro Dominador) is a 110-megawatt (MW) concentrated solar power located in the commune of María Elena in the Antofagasta Region of Chile, about 24 kilometres (15 mi) west-northwest of Sierra Gorda. The project was approved by the Chilean government in 2013 and is currently under construction by Abengoa Solar Chile, a branch of the multinational Abengoa Spain.
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History
Construction started on May 2014. On 29 August 2015, workers mobilization started a strike above poor working conditions. Following Abengoa financial woes, construction halted on January 2016, after about 1,500 workers were fired from the project, leaving only maintenance personnel on site. Construction progress was more than 50% complete.
Cerro Dominador CSP project
The Cerro Dominador project will see the construction and operation of a 110 MW concentrated solar power plant with storage in the northern Chilean region of Antofagasta, located in the Atacama desert, one of the driest places with the highest solar radiation on earth. When finished, Cerro Dominador will be the largest CSP power plant with storage in Latin America.
Technology
The Cerro Dominador project will have a 110 MW solar-thermal tower. This technology uses a series of mirrors (heliostats) that track the sun on two axes, concentrating the solar radiation on a receiver on the upper part of the tower, where the heat is transferred to molten salts. The molten salts then transfer their heat in a heat exchanger to water, generating superheated steam, which feeds a turbine that transforms the kinetic energy of the steam into electric energy using the Rankine cycle. In this way, the Cerro Dominador plant will be capable of generating around 110 MW of power. The plant will have an advanced storage system enabling it to generate electricity for up to 17.5 hours without direct solar radiation, which allows it to provide a stable electricity supply without interruptions if required. Additionally, the plant will have a sub-station and transmission line connected to the SING (Sistema Interconectado del Norte Grande) or Norte Grande Electric Grid. The plant has an estimated lifespan of 30 to 50 years.
Funding
The cost of the project is estimated at US$1 billion, and the construction will start the second half of 2014. The Chilean government, through CORFO, will provide 20 million US dollars of funding and will also loan the land where the plant will be located. The government also negotiated loans from the Inter-American Development Bank, the Clean Technology Fund, the German state-owned development bank (KfW) and the European Union.
Purpose
The project is part of Chile’s national renewable energy program, intended to provide Chile with cleaner energy, while also reducing its dependency on fossil fuels like coal and natural gas. Chile has set a target to produce 20% of its electricity from clean energy sources by 2025.
Cerro Dominador will prevent the emission of approximately 643,000 tons of CO2 into the atmosphere every year. The construction, operation and maintenance of the plant will also act as a catalyst for regional socio-economic development, creating a large number of direct and indirect jobs in construction, development, commissioning and plant operation as well as a network of services that will promote economic growth in the region.