Chile embraces wind power
10/09/2010VIÑA DEL MAR, Chile – The Chilean government has been supporting renewable energy projects to protect the environment and find sustainable and alternative ways to generate energy since 2001.
Norvind, S.A., an affiliate of Norwegian company SN Power, opened the Totoral Wind Farm, in the IV region of Chile, which is among 11 projects of the Coquimbo’s Regional Commission on the Environment to generate wind power.
The wind farm, in the commune of Canela, is about 300 kilometers (186 miles) north of Santiago. It cost US$140 million and has 23 wind turbines that are 125 meters (410 feet) high and weight 225 tons apiece. The energy generated has added 46 megawatts to the Central Interconnected System, Chile’s main power grid that serves more than 90% of its 16.6 million residents.
The energy generated by the wind farm has the capacity to supply power to a population of about 200,000.
Nils Huseby, executive vice president of SN Power for South America, told the Undersecretariat of Regional Development and Administration’s website 60% of the workforce used to construct the wind farm was local.
“We are applying a business model to this project that brings together energy development and sustainable development and that is also able to connect with and provide opportunities for the surrounding community of Canela,” he said.
The wind farm represents a reduction of 65,000 tons of CO2, the equivalent of 15,000 vehicles in a big city, according to SN Power.
Jaime Peña, director of the clean energy website Chile Renovables and an analyst on solar and wind energy related-issues, said investing in renewable energy sources is key to boosting the local economy.
“The country needs energy to grow, and currently it is a net importer of energy,” he said. “On the other hand, in northern Chile we have the highest rates of radiation in the world, and therefore, we should be leaders.”
There are six wind farms in Chile, with the first built in November 2001.
The construction of the Totoral Wind Farm was prompted by the new Unconventional Renewable Energy Sources law, which became effective in April 2008 and promotes better research and development conditions for wind and solar energy related-projects, said Edward Fuentealba, director of the Center for Energy Development of Antofagasta.
Chile is slightly behind other Latin American countries regarding the development of renewable energy sources, Fuentealba said.
“In Argentina, solar and wind energy development has been going on for quite some time, the same for Brazil,” he said. “In any case, with the potential for solar energy that exists in Chile, we believe we can still get into this race and position ourselves as a beacon for the world.”
Fuentealba said the negative impact of wind power upon the environment is minimal. There can be some sound pollution, given the noise made by the rotors of the wind turbines, but it is not louder than what is produced by an industrial site. Another factor to consider are the birds that live in the areas where the wind farms are set up, which could fly near the wind turbines and get killed by its blades.
“We should not forget that in order to develop as a country, we need electrical power and therefore we must ask ourselves if we want to use unconventional, renewable energy sources or thermal power,” Fuentealba said. “We cannot develop without having some kind of environmental impact. What we must do is try to minimize the impact.”