The President of the Executive Hydroelectric Commission of the Lempa River (CEL), Daniel Álvarez, has announced that the project to build an electricity generation plant with biogas in the Acelhuate River is progressing at a good pace.
According to Álvarez, the plant design has been completed, and the environmental impact study is nearing completion. The project is currently in the process of purchasing land for construction, followed by the tender and construction process.
Álvarez also revealed that the search for financing for the plant’s construction is ongoing. As part of this effort, the CEL has held talks with Saudi Arabia and the German embassy.
“Thanks to the Secretary of Commerce and Investment, Miguel Kattán, we have had conversations with institutions that can give us green funds, which can be more flexible due to the type of technology,” said the official.
The $80 million project aims to decontaminate the Urbina, Tomayate, Acelhuate, and Lempa rivers, with the latter being the country’s main resource for electricity generation. The plant will include a substation to interconnect three energy sources: biogas, photovoltaic, and mini-hydroelectric.
The installed capacity for these three technologies will be 25 gigawatt/hour (GWh) per year, with 75% generated from extracted biogas. The plant will supply energy to more than 21,000 Salvadoran families with a consumption of 100 kilowatt/hour (KWh).
The CEL states that this new electricity terminal will not only generate energy but will also have social and environmental benefits for families residing near the Acelhuate River basin. It will also prevent the discharge of more than 43 million cubic meters of untreated wastewater each year.
