This tender is part of the plan to add 100 MW of photovoltaic solar to the electrical matrix between 2025 and 2027.
The plan of the National Administration of Electric Power Plants and Transmissions (UTE) to incorporate new energy sources into the Uruguayan electricity generation matrix between 2025 and 2027 contemplates the construction of two solar parks of its property: one in San José and another in Cerro Long, which will require about US$ 100 million of investment.
These parks will be added to another already advanced in the Maragato department.
In this framework, this week the opening of bids for the international call for the design, engineering, supply, construction, assembly and commissioning of a 25 megawatt (MW) photovoltaic park in the Punta del Tigre area was held.
In that instance, the state-owned UTE received a total of 11 offers that were presented by Uruguayan and foreign companies.
The list is made up of seven local firms: Berkes, Ebital, Impacto Construcciones, Ingener, MGI SA, Teyma Uruguay and Ventus Ingenieria.
On the other hand, the foreign companies are Cttech Engineering & Consulting SL (Spain), DTW CO (China), Prodiel Energy (Spain) and Power Construction Corporation of China, a firm controlled by the government of that country.
Now the offers will go to the study of the electrical company that must determine the award of the work.
Once the project has been awarded, the completion period of the works may not exceed 548 calendar days (one and a half years) from the start date of the works.
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Among other requirements, the facilities must be designed to “maximize” annual energy production and consider a useful life of 30 years, according to the public documents of the call.
Furthermore, among the technical background included in the tender, the bidders had to prove that they had been contracted for the construction and commissioning of at least one photovoltaic park with a power equal to or greater than 20 MW or at least two photovoltaic parks with an equal power. or greater than 10 MW of installed power, in the last eight 8 years
In the medium term, a new public tender will be launched for another 75 MW photovoltaic solar park in Cerro Largo, close to the Melo converter plant, also under the turnkey modality.
At the end of last year, the process for the expropriation of privately owned land had been completed.
To define the location of the parks, the availability and proximity of the network was taken into account, along with the characteristics of the terrain, because they can affect the assembly costs. The panels are driven into the ground on iron bases and about two meters high. This support serves the purpose of supporting them when there is wind.
The state company's first solar park with a capacity of 32 MW is currently under construction. The installation is carried out on a property in the Punta del Tigre area in San José.
The panels used in that case are of Chinese origin, and were supplied by the South Korean Hyundai, as part of the agreement reached after the litigation between the two companies over the construction of the combined cycle plant.
Once these works are completed, UTE will add 130 MW of photovoltaic solar to the electrical matrix.
Today in Uruguay there are around 1,500 MW of wind generation installed, and around 250 MW of solar energy contracted, which feed their production into the electrical system and operate on the coast.
