Latin America
Peruvian legislators make push for 750-MW Santa Maria project
Members of Peru’s Fuerza Popular party introduced a bill in early May asking the government to declare the 750-MW Santa Maria hydroelectric project to be one of public necessity. The group, which holds a majority in Peru’s congress, argues that the proposal is of national interest and would serve as a catalyst for the country’s economic and social development.
If constructed, the US$1.6 billion plant would create more than 14,000 jobs over a five-year period, Fuerza Popular says.
Santa Maria is being developed by Energia Azul, which signed a memorandum of understanding with China Gezhouba Group in March 2012 to advance development of the project. At that time, the project was reported to include a 137-m-high dam wall, a 515 m3 reservoir, a 29-km-long diversion tunnel and four Pelton turbine-generator units.
North America
Wyden announces Clean Energy for America Act
U.S. Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Ron Wyden, D-Ore., announced the Clean Energy for America Act May 4. This legislation is intended to “measurably reduce carbon pollution over the next decade through a series of incentives for clean energy and the promotion of new technologies in the private sector.” The act includes technology neutral tax credits for domestic production of clean electricity and clean transportation fuel.
“This bill is built around the proposition that the law ought to reward innovative energy technologies with incentives that spark investment in the private economy,” Wyden said. “These investments will shrink electric bills for American families and create new clean energy jobs in Oregon and across the country.”
Wyden’s bill “… creates a performance-based incentive that would be neutral and flexible between clean electricity technologies. Taxpayers are able to choose between a production tax credit (PTC) and an investment tax credit (ITC), which are scaled based on the carbon emissions of the electricity generated. Power plants that emit at least 35 percent less carbon than the current nationwide average begin qualifying for a small incentive, which increases for power plants that are progressively cleaner. Zero emission facilities qualify for the maximum credits – a 2.3 cents per KWh hour PTC or a 30 percent ITC. The PTC is available for the 10 years after a facility is placed in service.”
Europe
Belarus’ 24-MW Polotskaya hydro plant commissioned
Belarusian utility RUP Vitebskenergo has commissioned its 24-MW Polotskaya hydropower project, located on the West Dvina River in the country’s northern region.
The plant was outfitted by manufacturer Mavel a.s., which supplied five Kaplan turbines, generators, hydraulic units, gearboxes and control systems, in addition to assembly and technical services.
Mavel signed the equipment contract in 2010, although flooding at the site in April 2013 caused a number of delays. The Czech company said the turbines installed at Polotskaya are its KP3000K4 type, which were also selected for installation at the Grodenskaya plant in 2010.
Financing for the plant is reported to have come from the Eurasian Development Bank.
Africa
AfDB named lead coordinator for 2,400-MW Batoka Gorge project
The governments of Zambia and Zimbabwe have appointed the African Development Bank (AfDB) as lead coordinator for the 2,400-MW Batoka Gorge project, which is estimated to cost US$6 billion, according to AfDB.
The Batoka Gorge construction phase is expected to begin later this year or in early 2018. The project, located about 34 miles downstream from Victoria Falls, will consist of a roller-compacted-concrete gravity arch dam 181 m high that impounds a reservoir with a catchment area of 508,000 km2. The site will feature two underground powerhouses, one on each river bank, each with a capacity of 800 MW.
The project, being constructed by Zambezi River Authority, will create 6,000 jobs during the construction phase and 1,200 permanent jobs during the operational phase, according to Zambian Finance Minister Felix Mutati.
Batoka Gorge is in line with objectives of AfDB’s New Deal on Energy for Africa.
Asia/Oceania
China, Pakistan sign US$50 billion MOU for Indus River Cascade
China and Pakistan have signed a US$50 billion memorandum of understanding to complete the Indus River Cascade, according to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.
Yousuf Naseem Khokhar, Pakistan’s Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) secretary for Water and Power, and Chinese Ambassador in Pakistan Sun Weidong signed the MoU, under which China’s NEA would oversee building and funding the five hydropower projects that have an estimated total installed capacity of 22,320 MW.
The planned cascade includes the 4,500-MW Diamer-Basha project, which is already being constructed, and four additional projects being developed: 2,400-MW Patan, 4,000-MW Thakot, 7,100-MW Bunji, and 4,320-MW Dasu.
Editor’s Note: Up-to-the-minute news on the global hydro market is available on HydroWorld.com. To read more news from a specific region, visit the World Regions page at www.hydroworld.com/world-regions.html.
