The first Yucatan solar energy generating plant was inaugurated on June 7th, in Progreso, with an investment of 30 million dollars. Manuel Mendizábal Quemada, general director of the company “Jinko Solar” in Mexico, who is in charge of this project, announced that they are already working in another larger plant in Valladolid, where 100 million dollars are being invested.
“The 18 megawatts of power capacity of this park, will contribute significantly to meet the demand of the entire state, which is 900 megawatts on average, so projects of this kind, which come to add to these efforts, will be supported by the government of the state, “said Governor Mauricio Vila Dosal, during the inauguration of this plant in the town San Ignacio, Progreso municipality.
Interviewed at the end of the ceremony, Mendizábal Quemada reported that this park was completed last May and that the facilty went through a test period for one month, until it was officially inaugurated on Friday June 7th, and it will generate 18 megawatts, enough to meet the energy demand of more than 30,000 Yucatecan families
“In addition, we are building another solar energy park in Valladolid, with an investment of around $ 100 million USD, it is larger than this one, and it will generate more than 79 megawatts of renewable energy and, although for now we only have these two plants, the idea is to open more in the near future, “he announced.
Regarding the operation of this newly inaugurated plant, he explained that the sun rays are captured in some 71,000 modules installed on “trakers” that automatically pass the energy to inverters which turn it into direct current, and it is sent to the San Ignacio electric power substation through transmission lines.
In his speech to local business leaders, federal and state legislators and officials of the state government, as well as from Progreso and other municipalities, the governor said that with this project, Yucatan has consolidated as a pole for attracting investments and caring for the environment.
This plant operates on 66 hectares of land, including 10 as an ecological reserve; it is the first of its kind on a large scale in the generation of clean energy using sunlight in Yucatan, and will help meet the energy demand of the state.
Regarding “Jinko Solar”, he reported that they are a leading company in the field, with presence in more than 100 countries; it operates with Chinese capital and is listed on the New York Stock Exchange, with plants in Argentina, Mexico, Spain and the United Arab Emirates, just to name a few.
This plant will contribute to the reduction of 25,691 tons of carbon dioxide emissions through 69,120 solar trina modules, 330 Huawei inverters, 1,320 PV Hardware followers and six Siemens transformers, for which the state reiterates its vanguard in the generation of environmental friendly clean energies.
“Adding the production of clean energy obtained through the wind farms of Dzilam de Bravo and Tizimín, as well as that generated through solar panels in homes, businesses and farms, the state already has a capacity of more than 200 megawatts of renewable energy, which is equivalent to satisfying the consumption of 450,000 households in Yucatan, ” said governor Mauricio Vila Dosal.
The state governor said that in the area of renewable energy, there are currently 24 clean energy projects registered to settle in the state of Yucatan, which have a capacity of 3,400 megawatts and would amount to an investment of 4.5 billion US dollars.
“With all these projects, we would be the only state in the Mexican Republic that will have self-sufficiency in terms of renewable energy (and a surplus), which is something that will make the Yucatan stand out not only at national level, but also internationally “, pointed out the governor.
“With this type of actions is how we are positioning Yucatan as an investment pole. We will continue to promote the state throughout Mexico and the rest of the world, but above all, we will continue to make renewable energy projects a priority for the state of Yucatán, “he added.
Finally, Manuel Mendizábal Quemada, general director of the company “Jinko Solar” in Mexico, thanked the governor for the support given to this project and highlighted the interest shown by the state authorities to help consolidate actions that are reflected in improvements in the state’s electricity supply.
by Alejandro Azcarate for The Yucatan Times
