The 17.2-megawatt wind farm is a pioneering project in Chile, implementing sustainability practices in water preservation, habitats, and agriculture.
The wind farm belongs to nonconventional renewable energy projects in Chile because of its classification under small-scale unconventional renewable energy projects. Located near a hydroelectric plant, the farm helps reduce greenhouse gas emissions while contributing to rebuilding the forest areas in the rural property.
The developer implemented the project in two phases, the first in 2009 and the second in 2015.
Location
The wind farm is in Chile’s rural areas. The developer installed the wind farm in a rural property called Fundo Ucuquer e Hijuela Mantancilla, located in Mantancilla town, Litueche district in Chile. The wind farm is in the Region VI of the country.
The wind farm is in the Cordillera de la Costa hills near the Mantancilla section of the Rapel river.
The property is 1,405 hectares, but the wind farm only uses 4.5% of the total property size. With such a small footprint, the project allows for other ecological restoration activities, forestry, and agriculture.
Ownership of the Farm
Energías Ucuquer S.A. (Ucuquer Energy) owns the project. Chilean investment financed the construction of the wind farm.
The wind farm works well with the main economic activities of the region, which are animal farming, forestry, and agriculture. As a small-scale wind farm, 95% of the rural property is for other agricultural activities.
The company is in Santiago, Metropolitan Region, Chile. Inversiones Rapel owns Energias Ucuquer.
Details of the Project
The project produces an annual electrical energy production of 50 gigawatt-hours.
Four wind turbines, each with 1.8 megawatt-capacity, and five 2-megawatt turbines power the wind farm and connect to the Sistema Interconectado Central–the alternating current grid of Chile.
Chinese company Envision manufactured the wind turbines used in the wind farm.
Chilean Energy Growth
Chile legislated a policy that requires the energy sector to obtain 5% of its energy production from renewable energy.
Concerning this policy, the Chilean energy sector is enlarging renewable energy production in the country. Ucuquer Wind Farm, though only producing around 50 gigawatt-hours every year, the wind farm helps achieve these sustainability objectives.
In 2021, fossil fuels still made up a significant amount of energy consumption in Chile. However, renewables are beginning to make an impact from hydropower and solar plus other renewable energy sources contributing more.
Transportation and agriculture aside, renewables are already leading electricity production in Chile. It’s a close call, but renewables eclipsed fossil fuel production in 2021.
Though the difference is not substantial, it is the first time in Chile’s electricity generation for renewables to produce more electricity than fossil fuels. Although the Ucuquer Wind Farm only has 50 gigawatt-hours each year, it illustrates a trend towards more renewable electricity production in the country.
Since 1985, renewable electricity generation has been growing steadily. Led by hydropower, solar, and wind, more renewable sources are helping the energy sector grow.
On the other hand, since 1985, Chile has been lowering electricity production obtained from coal while oil and gas increased in production. The contrast becomes evident–more growth for renewables and decreasing investment in fossil fuels.
Although the share of production of fossil fuels dropped, these power plants still produce significant amounts of electricity. Oil, gas, and coal have a combined electricity output of nearly 45 terawatt-hours in 2021.
As mentioned, renewable sources had a higher output in 2021. Renewable electricity sources produced 47.4 terawatt-hours in 2021 in Chile. Hydropower (16.53 terawatt-hours), solar (10.6 terawatt hours), and wind (9.48 terawatt-hours) led all renewables in producing electricity for the country.
Chile has been building more renewable and fewer fossil fuel power plants in the past years. Thus, renewable energy supplied the expansion of the energy sector. In line with the sector’s growth, the wind industry is one of the fast-growing sectors with the potential for more development.
Growth of Wind Power in Chile
In 2018, wind power only produced 3.59 terawatt-hours of electricity in Chile. As the wind industry generated 9.48 terawatt-hours of electricity in 2021, Chile nearly had a 300% growth from wind farms in three years.
For the Ucuquer Wind Farm, the location was not favorable for a wind farm. With the growing interest in the industry, more developers are studying the site for wind farm development.
Energias Ucuquer
The company is committed to achieving sustainability objectives with the wind farm. With the first phase producing 22 gigawatt-hours every year beginning in 2012, the company expanded the wind farm in 2015.
In 2015, Energias Ucuquer wind farm added the second phase of 10 megawatts by installing five turbines of 2 megawatts each. Furthermore, the developer constructed a new 110 kV substation that links to the Quelentaro substation of the Central Rapel Hydroelectric Plant.
Sustainable Growth
The wind farm has a lifespan of 30 years. Initially, the lifespan was only 20 years, but Energias Ucuquer Chile expanded it to 30 years. The wind farm began operating in 2009, which set the end of its working period in 2042.
The developer also allows the rest of the areas to enhance agriculture and implement sustainable measures.
The developer also engages in other environmental programs, including maintaining the groundwater and preserving prime habitats. Furthermore, the wind turbines do not use or affect the potable water in the wind farm. Energias Ucuquer also constantly checks the water consumption to preserve it.
Project Construction
Energias Ucuquer also employs waste management strategies To implement sustainable measures while restoring degraded sections and areas of the forest. The company spent $36 million to construct the wind farm.
To recoup the losses of the forest during construction, the developer is engaging in reforestation as a long-term strategy. The remaining 95.7% of the property is for agriculture and forestry.