The President said during the inauguration ceremony that this plant represents the turnaround in electric energy policy, after years of neoliberalism which sought to dismantle the Federal Electricity Commission (Comisión Federal de Electricidad). This is one of the most important renewable energy projects brought up in his government.
In its first stage, the plant will be able to supply electricity to 64,300 homes in the municipalities of Caborca, Altar, Puerto Peñasco and Sonoyta. The second phase, scheduled to open in June next year, would cover the municipalities of Ensenada, Tecate, Mexicali and Tijuana, thus complementing a national transmission network.
The tests of the first stage have already begun, targeted to enter commercial operations next April 21st. In addition, the construction of a 315-kilometer transmission line spanning from Puerto Peñasco to Mexicali is planned, with a view to an upcoming electrical interconnection between the national system and that of Baja California.
The photovoltaic plant will be the first of its kind in Mexico, since it combines photovoltaic energy and a 192 megawatt (mW) battery energy storage system. It will have four electrical substations and a 648 km circuit of five overhead transmission lines. This is equivalent to having a benefit of 2,278 GWh hours of annual production (supplying around 500 thousand homes).
jrr/llp/npg/lma
