Palo Gordo power station
| This article is part of the Global Bioenergy Power Tracker, a Global Energy Monitor project. |
Palo Gordo power station (Planta cogeneradora Palo Gordo) is an operating power station of at least 46-megawatts (MW) in San Antonio Suchitepéquez, Suchitepéquez, Guatemala with multiple units, some of which are not currently operating. It is also known as Ingenio Palo Gordo.
Location
Table 1: Project-level location details
| Plant name | Location | Coordinates (WGS 84) |
|---|---|---|
| Palo Gordo power station | San Antonio Suchitepéquez, Suchitepéquez, Guatemala | 14.488, -91.3986 (exact)[1] |
The map below shows the exact location of the power station.
Unit-level coordinates (WGS 84):
- Unit 1, Unit 2: 14.488, -91.3986
Project Details
Table 2: Unit-level details
| Unit name | Status | Fuel(s) | Capacity (MW) | Start year | Retired year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unit 1 | mothballed[2] | bioenergy - agricultural waste (solids), coal - unknown[2][3][4] | 31[2] | 2012[4][5] | – |
| Unit 2 | operating[2] | bioenergy - agricultural waste (solids), coal - unknown[2][3][4] | 46[2] | 2015[6] | – |
Table 3: Unit-level ownership and operator details
| Unit name | Owner | Operator |
|---|---|---|
| Unit 1 | Ingenio Palo Gordo[7] | Ingenio Palo Gordo[7] |
| Unit 2 | Ingenio Palo Gordo[7] | Ingenio Palo Gordo[7] |
Background
The Palo Gordo power station at the Ingenio Palo Gordo sugar mill is one of several Guatemalan power plants generating electricity from a mix of biomass and coal. During the November to May sugar cane harvest season, it runs on bagasse (cellulose fiber from crushed sugar cane stalks); from June to October, coal serves as a backup fuel.[8][9][10]
Annual reports from the Guatemalan sugar cane trade association Cengicaña indicate that bagasse has accounted for the majority of fuel consumption at the Palo Gordo plant since its inception.[11]
Recent reports from Guatemala's Ministry of Energy and Mines, including the 2020-2034 power generation plan and the 2022-2052 energy expansion plan, show an installed capacity of 46 MW for Palo Gordo's operating Unit 2.[12][13] The Palo Gordo plant's other unit - Unit 1, with a stated capacity of 30.9 MW - appears to be inactive.[13] The power plant is owned by Ingenio Palo Gordo.[14][8][12][13]
At the national level Guatemala continues to move away from coal towards renewables. Under the new contracts signed by national electricity agency EEGSA during Guatemala's February 2020 energy tender, plants burning coal only will account for 8% of national electricity production in 2021 (down from 18% in 2019) while plants such as Palo Gordo that use a mix of coal and biomass will represent 2% of national production in 2021.[15]
Articles and Resources
References
- ↑ https://goo.gl/maps/jt62Fwqa3JHNzPa4A.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 (PDF) https://mem.gob.gt/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/PEG-2022-2052.pdf.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 3.0 3.1 (PDF) https://www.mem.gob.gt/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Plan%20de%20Expansio%CC%81n%20del%20Sistema%20de%20Generacio%CC%81n%20y%20Transporte%202020-2034.pdf.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 (PDF) https://cengicana.org/files/20210929082458592.pdf.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ (PDF) https://cengicana.org/files/20150902101649173.pdf.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ https://www.prensalibre.com/economia/plantas_de_carbon_aportaran_900_mw-plantas-carbon-900_mw-planta_carbon-plantas_carbon-jaguar-energia-jaguar_energy_0_1279072129-html/.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 http://portal.ipg.com.gt/_frmPrincipal.html.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 8.0 8.1 "Plantas de carbón aportarán 900 MW". Prensa Libre. January 5, 2015.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "Recopilación de la Información de los Simposios de Análisis de la Zafra 1997/1998 – 2014/2015 de Generación de Energía (p 7)" (PDF). Cengicaña: Centro Guatemalteco de Investigación y Capacitación de la Caña de Azúcar. December 2015.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "Boletín Estadístico Generación de Energía - Recopilación de la Información del Proceso de Generación de Energía Presentada en los Simposios de Análisis de las Zafras de 1997 al 2020 (p 22)" (PDF). Cengicaña: Centro Guatemalteco de Investigación y Capacitación de la Caña de Azúcar. September 2020.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "Boletín Estadístico Cogeneración 1997-2021 (pp 34-36)" (PDF). Cengicaña. September 29, 2021.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ 12.0 12.1 "Plan de Expansión del Sistema de Generación y Transporte 2020-2034 (p 51)" (PDF). Ministerio de Energía y Minas de Guatemala. 2020.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 "Plan de expansión indicativo del sistema de generación 2022-2052" (PDF). Ministerio de Energía y Minas. 2022.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "Instalación Planta Eléctrica". Ingenio Palo Gordo. Retrieved 2021-01-09.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "Del carbón a la energía limpia: Así son los nuevos contratos de generación de EEGSA". Prensa Libre. February 13, 2020.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
Additional data
To access additional data, including an interactive map of bioenergy power stations, a downloadable dataset, and summary data, please visit the Global Bioenergy Power Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.
