“The most important wind farm in Latin America” in the words of Argentina’s President, Christina Fernandez de Kirchner, was officially inaugurated on September 30.
More than 400 people attended the official ceremony, marking the completion of the first phase of the 77 MW Rawson Wind Power Plant I & II now installed. The event was held by Emgasud, the owner of the power plant and the main investor in renewable energy projects in Argentina. In her inauguration speech, Argentina’s President emphasized the role wind can play in supporting the diversification of Argentina’s energy mix:
“One of the strategic planning assignments that our country has for the medium and long-term is to diversify Argentina’s energy mix, so that it becomes less dependent on fossil fuels, especially on gas, than it has been until now,” she said. the event, including the Argentinian Minister of Planning, Julio De Vido, the Governor of the province of Chubut, Mario Das Neves.
The President of Emgasud, Alejandro Ivanissevich, stressed the huge wind potential of Argentina, especially in the Patagonia, and confirmed Emgasud’s belief that Argentina can reach 5,000 MW of wind capacity in 2020.
He emphasized three main reasons for investing and developing wind in the country: “Wind can help to diversify our energy mix, it generates clean energy helping to combat climate change and it contributes to Argentina’s growth and development”. He also sent a special thanks to Vestas for its understanding and support.
“Vestas is the world leader in wind technology and we believe that its wind turbines are able to adapt and perform well under the extreme wind conditions we have here in Rawson. This is why we have selected Vestas to deliver, transport, install and commission Rawson Wind Power Plant.”
“In the past years, we have seen in Argentina an increasing interest in wind. As the President in Argentina mentioned, wind can help the country diversify its energy mix. Vestas is fully committed to support the Argentinian Government in the achievement of their energy objectives for wind,” declared Juan Araluce, President of Vestas Mediterranean.
“We are honored to be actively involved in the largest wind farm in Argentina and we look forward to being even more engaged in the country, for the country. We are already contributing with our know how, technology and first class wind turbines, and we are committed to support the creation of a local industry through the development of a strong network of local suppliers and competencies,” states Marcelo Tokman Ramos, Vice President South America (excluding Brazil) and Head of Government Relations in Latin America.
Once the 43 V90-1.8 MW turbines will be up and running in the beginning of 2012, the annual production of 320 GWh per year will correspond to the annual residential electricity consumption of 150,000 households in Argentina.