MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Argentina purchases 43 turbines for wind farms in Patagonia’s Rawson

Delivery of the turbines should be completed in 2012

Denmark’s Vesta Wind Systems has received an order from Argentina for 43 V90-1.8 MW wind turbines (totalling 77 MW) to be mounted in the Rawson I wind farm and Rawson II wind farm both located in the outskirts of Rawson, Chubut province, Argentine Patagonia.

The order, signed under a National and International Public Tender, includes delivery, transportation, installation and commissioning of the wind turbines, a Vestas OnlineBusiness SCADA system and a 5-year service and maintenance agreement. Delivery of the turbines is expected to start in the first half of 2011 and to be completed in January 2012.

The wind energy order has been placed by Emgasud S.A., an Argentine company providing services for power generation, distribution and transportation of natural gas. Furthermore, Emgasud is the main investor in renewable energy projects in the country.

”Emgasud is fully committed to contribute to the diversification of Argentina’s energy mix and to continuously protect the environment. Therefore, the company has decided to invest in the development of renewable energy projects and to acquire state of the art technology for its wind power plants,” said Alejandro Ivanisevich, President of Emgasud S.A. who added: “We are confident that the technology, the products and the solutions acquired from Vestas for our wind power plants in Rawson will allow us to meet the highest standards and quality requirements.”

“This new project in Argentina represents one step ahead in our current expansion in Latin America,” said Juan Araluce, President of Vestas Mediterranean. He added that the agreement shows that Argentina is really committed to the development of renewable energy and to wind energy, in particular; we hope this is the beginning of a long-term relationship with a company that is deeply committed to the development of wind energy and renewable energy, in general”.

The wind power plants will produce more than 320 GWh per year, which corresponds to an annual emission saving of 100,000 tons of CO2. Furthermore, the annual production of 320 GWh per year corresponds to the annual residential electricity consumption of 150,000 households in Argentina.