Enel, Escondida, Colbun Bid For Chile Geothermal Concessions
November 24 2010 - 01:53PM
Dow Jones News
Thirteen companies, including the Chilean unit of Italian power
utility Enel SpA (ENEL.MI), power generator Colbun (COLBUN.SN) and
mining company Minera Escondida, which runs the world's largest
copper mine, bid for twenty new geothermal concessions in Chile,
the nation's Energy Minister said on Wednesday.
To promote the development of geothermal energy exploration and
production in the Andean nation, the government opened a tender
process for twenty new geothermal concessions in September.
That process came to a close Tuesday with 13 companies making 70
bids for the 20 concessions, Energy Minister Ricardo Raineri said,
adding that "best bids" will be awarded the concessions by the end
of February.
"We're pleasantly surprised with the good showing this [tender]
process received. It goes to show that the development of
geothermal energy has a promising future," Raineri said.
Minera Escondida is controlled and operated by diversified
global mining company BHP Billiton Ltd. (BHP, BHP.AU), with a 57.5%
stake, while Anglo-Australian mining company Rio Tinto PLC (RTP,
RIO.LN) holds 30% and a Japanese consortium led by Mitsubishi Corp.
(MSBHY, 8058.TO) owns 12.5%.
The government has said it expects to see more than $200 million
in investments in geothermal energy exploration and development
over the next two years.
The Andean nation's most advanced geothermal project is being
developed by the Chilean unit of Enel.
The so-called Apacheta geothermal project in northern Chile is
aiming to provide 40-megawatts of geothermal electricity by the end
of 2013 or early 2014 to the northern SING power grid.
The Apacheta project is being developed in a joint-venture
called Geotermica del Norte S.A., with Enel holding 51%, Chilean
state oil and gas company Empresa Nacional del Petroleo SA, or
ENAP, holding 46%, and state copper-mining company Corporacion
Nacional del Cobre, or Codelco holding the remaining 3%.
Nearly three-fourths of the new geothermal concessions are
located in Chile's arid north, where the vast majority of the
nation's booming copper mining industry is located.
Geothermal energy development is part of the government's
efforts to assure future power supply to the local mining industry,
said Raineri, adding that within ten years some 1,000 megawatts of
geothermal energy will likely be harnessed from the heat trapped
underneath Chile's surface.
The government has said it aims to have 20% of Chile's power
coming from non-conventional energy sources, which include
geothermal, solar and wind energy, by 2020, as the Andean nation
needs to incorporate more than 10,000 megawatts of new capacity
over the next 10 years to keep up with demand.
As of December 2009, the central SIC grid, which provides power
to over 90% of the country's population, had an installed capacity
of 11,352 megawatts.
-By Anthony Esposito, Dow Jones Newswires; 56-2-715-8929;
anthony.esposito@dowjones.com
Encore Energy Partners Lp (NYSE:ENP)
Historical Stock Chart
From Feb 2024 to Mar 2024
Encore Energy Partners Lp (NYSE:ENP)
Historical Stock Chart
From Mar 2023 to Mar 2024