Ecuador announces renewables auctions, plans to allocate 1 GW

From pv magazine LatAm

During the inauguration of the recent LatAm Future Energy Solar and Wind Virtual Summit event, the vice minister of electricity and non-renewable natural resources of the new government of Ecuador, Gabriel Argüello, announced plans to launch two new renewable energy auctions.

Although Ecuador already produces 91% of its electricity with clean energy, especially hydroelectric power, Argüello said he wants to increase generation from wind and solar sources. In August, the government approved a new version of the electricity master plan until 2031, in order to support these aims.

“The new catalyst is the incorporation of the increase from 200 to 500 renewable MW,” said the deputy minister.

To do this, the auction will be held at the end of November. The government expects an estimated investment of $750 million and said that all selected projects will have to be operational at the beginning of 2024.

In 2022, a second 500 MW procurement exercise will be launched. At a later date, other new auctions may be considered, the government said, without providing any additional details.

The Ecuadorian authorities held an initial 200 MW PV tender in 2019 and 2020. The winner was Spanish PV developer Solarpack.

According to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), the Latin American country had only installed 28 MW of PV capacity by the end of 2020. Over the past seven years, it has deployed just 2 MW of PV.