This Friday was inaugurated in the municipality of Aipe, Huila, the primer for solar park in the south of the country and the third that will supply the Ecopetrol Group. Its construction was in charge of AES Colombia and it cost 21.2 million dollars.
Even though President Gustavo Petro had confirmed his attendance at this inauguration, he had to cancel just a few minutes before the start of the event. On behalf of the Government, the Minister of Mines and Energy, Irene Vélez, was present.
The Brisas Solar Ecopark, in 49,000 solar panelsIt joins the Castilla (21 megawatts) and San Fernando (61 megawatts) parks, which have been in operation since 2019 and 2021.
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The president of Ecopetrol, Felipe Bayón, highlighted that this solar park allows the company to «continue advancing towards the just, gradual, orderly, responsible energy transition and seeking to always have energy sovereignty. At Ecopetrol we have proposed to lead and be a benchmark in energy transition on the American continent.»
The project was developed under a contract of purchase of energy for 15 years with AES Colombia and its objective is to self-supply 10 percent of the energy demand of the operations of the 21 Ecopetrol production fields in Huila.
The 26 megawatt capacity of the Brisas Solar Ecopark It is equivalent to powering a populated center of 35,000 inhabitants like Puerto Inírida, Guainía. It occupies an area of almost 20 hectares and its solar panels have bifacial technology and a sun tracking mechanism that allows greater efficiency.
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Its entry into operation will avoid the emission of more than 216,000 equivalent tons of CO2 (carbon dioxide) into the atmosphere during the 15 years of operation, a figure that is equivalent to planting approximately 1.7 million trees.
In the construction of the solar park, 285 jobs were generated, of which 73 percent were local labor.
The goal of the Ecopetrol Group is to have a renewable energy portfolio of 900 megawatts by 2025 which includes not only solar projects but also wind, geothermal, small hydroelectric, biomass and battery initiatives.
The next solar parks that will come into operation will be located in Cartagena (26 megawatts), Barrancabermeja (56 megawatts) and in Campo Rubiales (100 megawatts). Additionally, 13 projects will be built in the company’s transportation system.