Samsung C&T’s Trading and Investment Group and Korean Southern Power (KOSPO) have completed construction on the $600m Kelar gas-fired combined-cycle power plant in Mejillones, Chile.
Asia-Pacific has the largest power generation construction pipeline out of the major regions, with $1.67 trillion worth of investments, according to a new report.
Mainstream Renewable Power has received planning approval from Chile’s Environmental Assessment Service for its 245MW solar PV facility in Escondido, Chile.
Spanish energy group Elecnor has been awarded a $117.2M contract by Santiago Solar to build a solar PV plant in Chile.
A joint venture led by OHL has won a contract from copper producer Codelco for the expansion of the Talabre dam in Chile.
KfW IPEX-Bank, along with eight local and international banks and a US insurance firm, has provided funding for a grid interconnection project in Chile.
Strukton International has secured a contract worth €46M from Metro de Santiago to build five underground stations at the new Line 3 metro line under construction in Santiago, Chile.
“We did it. We – the Vogel family from Boise, Idaho – did it. We did the impossible, and I couldn’t be happier that we did,” wrote Nancy Sathre-Vogel, in her family blog, when she and her family reached Ushuaia, in Argentina.Eight years ago, John and Nancy Vogel left their teaching jobs, took their twin boys out of school, bought two single bikes and a tandem and embarked on a journey to cycle the Pan-American Highway.The Pan-American Highway is a network of roads, extending from Prudhoe Bay, Alaska to Ushuaia, Argentina. According to the Guinness World Records, the 48,000km highway, which runs through the North and South American continents, is the world’s longest ‘motorable road’.The highway comprises official and unofficial sections. The official section runs from Nuevo Laredo, Mexico to Buenos Aires, Argentina, while the unofficial sections can be found to both the north and south of the official route.The route — including the official and unofficial sections — spreads across 14 countries: the USA, Canada, Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Chile and Argentina.However, if you are thinking in cycling or driving all the way down until Ushuaia without stopping — except to rest, sleep or eat — take that out of your mind.The route is interrupted by a 160km-wide break, named the Darién Gap, between Central and South America.The Pan-American Highway is for many the ultimate road trip and here — as part of the WCN’s Roads Week — we provide you with everything you need to know, so you can start, if you fancy the challenge, your ‘little’ adventure.
Wind and solar energy firm Mainstream Renewable Power has secured contracts from the National Energy Commission of Chile to build and operate seven wind energy plants, worth a total of $1.65bn.
A selection of current construction work and studies shows hydropower’s wide range, says Patrick Reynolds. Numerous hydropower and pumped storage projects are in construction or planning across the globe, and International Water Power & Dam Construction (IWP&DC) briefly notes progress and developments on a selection in Asia, Europe, North America and South America, and also the Middle East.A major hydropower scheme that is well advanced is the Ulu Jelai project, in Malaysia. Being constructed by Salini Impregilo, the project involves significant surface and underground works.Both surface and underground works feature in the Foz Tua pumped storage project, in Portugal, and which is also at an advanced stage. The project involves construction of a 108m-high double-curvature arch dam.Developing hydropower where a new dam is not needed, efforts are pushing ahead in the US to exploit existing lock and dams structures, such as the run-of-river projects being undertaken by power company American Municipal Power (AMP) on the Ohio River. The plants under construction include 72MW Smithland.Statkraft may give the go-ahead this year for two run-of-river projects in Chile, following an acquisition in 2015. However, following a recent review of its investment programme it has yet to decide what action it will take.Many further projects are coming, and a few among those include recent awards for consultants MWH Global and ÅF, respectively, in South America, Europe and the Middle East.Malaysia: Ulu JelaiConstruction of the 383MW Ulu Jelai hydropower project, in Malaysia, has been underway since 2011 and is well advanced, including the recent milestone completion of the Susu roller compacted concrete (RCC) dam.Ulu Jelai is being developed by Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) in Pahang state, approximately 200km north of the capital Kuala Lumpur. It is one of five hydro projects being built at present to help stabilise the power grid.The project is located on Bertam River, and involves major dam and tunnel works. The rated net head of the scheme is approximately 360m.Key features of the project include the Susu reservoir on Bertam River, and to which water is conveyed by transfer tunnels from the Lemoi and Telom rivers, running on opposite sides of the main river. Lemoi and Telom are tributaries of Bertam and naturally join the main river downstream of the project location but are being tapped with offtake weirs at higher elevations. The tunnels have lengths of 7.5km and 8.5km, respectively.Water flows from Susu reservoir down a 9.5m-diameter unlined headrace tunnel to the underground powerhouse complex, holding a pair of 191MW Francis turbines. Ulu Jelai is expected to generate approximately 326GWh of electricity annually.Salini Impregilo is main contractor on the scheme, which is nearing completion.The Susu RCC dam is more than 80m-high with a crest length of 512.5m. Its volume is approximately 750,000m3, the contractor said.The volume of other concrete works on the project is approximately 190,000m3. Surface excavations and earth moving has involved more than 3M m3 of material.Underground construction has been performed by both TBM boring and drill and blast excavation. In total, the project has called for excavation of 26km of tunnels and also the powerhouse cavern complex. The TBMs were used to bore 15km of tunnels, and 11km of excavation of undertaken by drill and blast.Salini Impregilo notes that the total underground rock excavation is approximately 800,000m3.
A consortium led by Astaldi has won a €400M contract from the European Southern Observatory (ESO) for the construction of the dome and telescope structure of the European Extremely Large Telescope (E-ELT) in northern Chile. The consortium, known as the ACe Consortium, also includes Cimolai and the nominated sub-contractor EIE Group.The E-ELT, touted to be the largest optical/near-infrared telescope in the world, will feature a main mirror measuring 39m in diameter. The project is being built in Cerro Armazones, a 3,000m peak about 20km from ESO’s Paranal Observatory. The scope of the contract includes the design, manufacture, transport, construction, on-site assembly and verification of the dome and telescope structure. Astaldi’s chairman Paolo Astaldi said: “This project is truly visionary, both in what it represents for the field of astronomy and for construction and engineering.“Astaldi and our project partners, Cimolai and EIE Group, are extremely proud to have been selected by ESO through their call for tender to help make their vision a reality.“Astaldi is renowned for delivering its best-in-class technical skills, quality construction and strong execution, and we will put the full force of our core strengths behind this project. It is with great excitement that I sign a contract of such astronomical ambition.”
Mainstream Renewable Power has received an approval from the Service of Environmental Assessment for its 264MW Cerro Tigre wind farm in Chile.Located close to the town of Antofagasta in north Chile, the $630M project will include 80 wind turbines in an area of 1,131ha and will be connected to the northern grid. Mainstream Renewable Power Chile’s CEO Bart Doyle said: “This work will contribute to the development of a diversified, clean and reliable energy mix which will provide an efficient solution to the country and the people of this region.“We are a company that develops its own projects and we are always looking for new opportunities for solar and wind energy developments, and the region of Antofagasta has important attributes that enable this.”The company will also commence construction of two wind farms in Chile: the Sarco wind farm which is located in Atacama, and the Aurora wind farm, located in the region of Los Lagos.With a combined generation capacity of 300MW, the two wind farms will provide power to the Central Interconnected System.