Background
The Mexican power grid is divided into nine zones, seven of which are interconnected and form the National Interconnected System (SIN). The Project will be located in the Northeast Zone, which includes the states of Tamaulipas, Nuevo León, a large part of Coahuila and some municipalities from San Luis Potosí. According to the Mexican Ministry of Energy (SENER), the generation capacity of Coahuila was 2,989.5 mega-watts (MW) in 2013.
According to the Power Sector Capital Improvement Program for 2014- 2028, the energy produced in the Northeast Zone is mainly consumed in the Monterrey metropolitan area, which recorded maximum demand of 4,121 MW in August 2013. The Saltillo area has the second highest power demand in the zone and is expected to experience moderate
growth in the near term. To better manage the energy needs of Monterrey and Saltillo, the Northeast power grid is interconnected with the coalfired plants in Piedras Negras and the combined-cycle plants in Reynosa,
Matamoros and San Luis Potosi.
As a result of this Project, renewable energy will account for almost 4% of gross power production in the state of Coahuila, while the percentage of coal-fired power generation will drop from 90.12% to 86.75%.
Description
The project comprises the design, construction and operation of a 199.5
MW wind farm that will be developed in an area of approximately
11,746 acres. The project includes the following components:
- Construction of up to 95 wind turbines, with a nominal power of 2.1
MW each. The steel towers will have a hub height of 80 meters
(262.5 ft.).
- Wind turbine transformers will step up the voltage of generated
power to 34.5 kV for transmission to the collector substation.
- Construction of two substations to collect and distribute the 34.5 kV
energy supply. Energy will be delivered primarily through
underground lines to the collector substation, where it will be stepped
up to 230 kV and delivered to the interconnection substation through
an overhead transmission line.
- Installation of a control and data system (SCADA) to control and
monitor the operation of each turbine, as well as the Project as a
whole from a central computer or a remote PC.
- Installation of a permanent tower at the project site for wind
monitoring and evaluation of potential energy generation.
The energy generated will be purchased by a Mexican mining company, Industrias Peñoles, S.A.B. de C.V., pursuant to a long-term power purchase agreement (PPA).
Benefits
The Project provides an opportunity to displace greenhouse gases (GHG) and other pollutants produced by traditional hydrocarbon-based energy generation, while providing local residents with a safe and reliable energy alternative. Specifically, this project is expected to displace
approximately 381,424 metric tons/year of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e).
The Project is anticipated to produce approximately 763 GWh of zerocarbon electricity per year, equivalent to the annual energy consumption of 101,093 households.
