Ecoener to invest $200 million to build two run-of-river hydropower plants in Ecuador

12 | 20 | 2023

Ecoener to invest $200 million to build two run-of-river hydropower plants in Ecuador

  • The company is set to generate almost $900 million in revenues through two 30-year PPAs.
  • The facilities will have the capacity to supply 152,000 homes a year and will avoid the emission of 148,000 tonnes of CO2 into the atmosphere.
  • Luis de Valdivia said: “These projects further cement our robust growth and increase our assets in the hydropower segment, which is strategic for Ecoener.”

20 December 2023.- Ecoener is set to invest $200 million in the construction of two run-of-river hydropower plants in Ecuador. The projects are backed by two 30-year Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) signed with the Ecuadorian government.

The company will generate revenues of almost $900 million over the 30-year period once the facilities are operational, which is scheduled for 24 months after construction begins.

The concession was awarded as part of a 500 MW renewable energy tender process held by Ecuador’s Ministry of Energy and Mines. Ecoener was awarded 37% of the average annual energy generated, 20% of the nominal power auctioned and 66% of the hydroelectric generation capacity awarded. 

Ecoener Chairman Luis de Valdivia said: “These projects further cement our robust growth and increase our assets in the hydropower segment, which is strategic for Ecoener.”

The two plants have an average capacity factor of 70%, which makes them high capacity projects.

Commitment to Ecuador

With a combined capacity of 99 MW, the Santa Rosa (49.5 MW) and El Rosario (49.5 MW) hydropower plants, to be built in the Morona-Santiago region of Ecuador, will be run-of-river plants which do not have reservoirs and adapt their operations to the natural flow of the river.  

The construction and commissioning process will create more than 1,000 direct and indirect jobs.

The facilities will have the capacity to supply 152,000 homes each year and will avoid the emission of 148,000 tonnes of CO2 into the atmosphere.

Global expansion

These new plants will position Ecoener as a supplier of safe, high quality renewable energy in Ecuador, which joins the company’s growing list of international markets.

Ecoener, led by Luis de Valdivia, recently inaugurated two photovoltaic plants in the Dominican Republic with a total installed capacity of 97 MW, and expects to end 2024 with five photovoltaic parks in operation in the country, with total installed capacity of 279 MW. The company is set to invest a total of $289 million in developing these projects in the Dominican Republic.

Ecoener currently has 341MW in operation, 352MW under construction and 1,366MW under development.