Trinidad power station

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Trinidad power station (Planta cogeneradora Trinidad) is an operating power station of at least 92-megawatts (MW) in Masagua, Escuintla, Guatemala. It is also known as Ingenio Trinidad.

Location

Table 1: Project-level location details

Plant name Location Coordinates (WGS 84)
Trinidad power station Masagua, Escuintla, Guatemala 14.151, -90.841 (exact)[1]

The map below shows the exact location of the power station.

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Unit-level coordinates (WGS 84):

  • Unit 4, Unit 5: 14.151, -90.841

Project Details

Table 2: Unit-level details

Unit name Status Fuel(s) Capacity (MW) Start year Retired year
Unit 4 operating[2] bioenergy - agricultural waste (solids), coal - unknown[3][2][4] 46[2] 2005[5][3]
Unit 5 operating[2] bioenergy - agricultural waste (solids), coal - unknown[3][2][4] 46[2] 2016[6]

Table 3: Unit-level ownership and operator details

Unit name Owner Operator
Unit 4 Grupo San Diego[7][8][9] Ingenio Trinidad[9]
Unit 5 Grupo San Diego[7][8][9] Ingenio Trinidad[9]

Background

Owned by Corporación San Diego S.A., the Trinidad power station at the Ingenio Trinidad sugar mill is one of several Guatemalan power plants generating electricity from a mix of biomass and coal.[10] During the November to May sugar cane harvest season, it runs on bagasse (cellulose fiber from crushed sugar cane stalks); from June to October, it uses coal as a backup fuel.[11][12][13]

The Guatemalan Ministry of Energy and Mines lists five generating units at the Ingenio Trinidad power plant. Units 1 and 2, with a combined capacity of 21 MW, were apparently inactive as of 2022. Units 3, 4, and 5 have installed capacities of 19.8, 46, and 46 MW, respectively.[14][15] As of July 2023, Units 1 through 3 do not qualify for inclusion in GEM's Global Bioenergy Power Tracker because their capacity falls below the tracker's minimum 30 MW per unit threshold.[16]

Annual reports from the Guatemalan sugar cane trade association Cengicaña indicate that the plant was initially commissioned in 2005 and fueled 100% with bagasse during its first six years of operation.[17] Since 2016, when Unit 5 entered service as the plant's most recent expansion unit[18], bagasse has represented nearly three quarters of the plant's fuel consumption, with coal supplying the remainder.[17] Recent Guatemalan government reports confirm that biomass is the primary fuel at all units, while coal serves as a secondary, backup source.[14][15]

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 Trinidad that use a mix of coal and biomass will represent 2% of national production in 2021.[19]

Articles and Resources

References

  1. https://goo.gl/maps/yXB7byVUWCAR9kSa7. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  2. 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. 3.0 3.1 3.2 (PDF) https://cengicana.org/files/20210929082458592.pdf. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  4. 4.0 4.1 (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)
  5. (PDF) https://cengicana.org/files/20150902101649173.pdf. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  6. https://www.facebook.com/cesdgt/posts/322531358126238/. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  7. 7.0 7.1 https://www.sandiego.com.gt/nosotros/. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  8. 8.0 8.1 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1lcJUxl90ag. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  9. 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 (PDF) https://www.cnee.gob.gt/pdf/resoluciones/2014/CNEE%20296%202014.pdf. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  10. "Quienes Somos". San Diego S.A. Retrieved 2021-01-09.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  11. "Plantas de carbón aportarán 900 MW". Prensa Libre. January 5, 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  12. "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)
  13. "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)
  14. 14.0 14.1 "Plan de Expansión del Sistema de Generación y Transporte 2020-2034 (p 51)". Ministerio de Energía y Minas de Guatemala. 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  15. 15.0 15.1 "Plan de expansión indicativo del sistema de generación 2022-2052 (p 68)" (PDF). Ministerio de Energía y Minas. 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  16. "Methodology - Global Bioenergy Power Tracker". Global Energy Monitor. Retrieved 2023-07-03.
  17. 17.0 17.1 "Boletín Estadístico Cogeneración 1997-2021 (pp 34-36)" (PDF). Cengicaña. September 29, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  18. "Nuestra nueva unidad de generación Ingenio Trinidad Bloque 5 ha iniciado operación comercial". Comercializadora de Energía San Diego / Facebook. October 30, 2016. Retrieved 2023-07-03.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  19. "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.