Ecuador’s Ministry of Energy and Non-Renewable Natural Resources has shortlisted five bidders in a tender for a 14.8 MW/40.9 MWh solar+storage facility launched in June. The final results of the tender will be revealed at the end of the first quarter of 2021.
Canadian Solar Conolophus – a unit of Chinese-Canadian solar manufacturer Canadian Solar – participated in the tender. Other bidders included a Spanish-French consortium formed by Gransolar and Total Eren, French renewables developer Voltalia S.A, Norwegian solar developer Scatec Solar, and a consortium led by South Korea’s Woojin Industrial Systems and Australian battery manufacturer EnergyFlex.
The Conolophus project is designed to lower diesel consumption on Santa Cruz Island in Galapagos National Park, as well as the adjacent island of Baltra. It is the third project of its type for the archipelago.
Another 1 MW project, including a 2.2 MWh battery storage system, was announced two years ago. The project has the financial support of the Korean Institute of Development and Technology (KIAT).
Another project under the KIAT program is a PV installation with storage, built by Siemens on Isabela Island. The company completed one of the world’s first 100%-renewable island power systems in October 2018. The $13 million project – part of the government’s Zero Fossil Fuels on Galapagos policy – features more than 3,000 polycrystalline PV modules from Chinese manufacturer Trina Solar, for 952 kW of PV capacity.
