Enel will build 593 MW of wind capacity in Mexico following renewable tender win

Enel S.p.A. ("Enel"), acting through its renewable energy subsidiary Enel Rinnovabile S.A. de C.V. (“ERinnovabile”), has been awarded the right to sign a number of contracts in Mexico to supply energy and clean certificates with four wind projects for a total capacity of 593 MW in the country’s third long-term public tender since its energy reform. The award follows Enel’s success in the two previous tenders, once again confirming its position as the largest renewable player in Mexico in terms of installed capacity and project portfolio.

“We are thrilled about yet another great success in Mexico, a core market for us, and we are proud to confirm our leadership in the country’s renewables arena” said Antonio Cammisecra, Head of Enel’s Global Renewable Energies Division Enel Green Power. “Through this important win, we will significantly contribute to the country’s demand for electricity from renewable sources. This is just another step of our strategy in the country that we will implement through organic growth as well as through the ‘build, sell and operate’ model that enables us to leverage on our global pipeline, accelerating our growth worldwide.”

The Enel Group will be investing around 700 million US dollars in the construction of the new facilities, in line with the investments outlined in the company’s current Strategic Plan. Each project will be supported by a contract providing for the sale to Mexico’s Cámara de Compensación1 of specified volumes of energy over a 15-year period and of the related clean certificates over a 20-year period.

The new plants are due to enter into operation in the first half of 2020. Once fully operational, the facilities are expected to produce 2.09 TWh/year of renewable energy, therefore avoiding the annual emission of nearly 960,000 tonnes of CO2 into the atmosphere.

Three plants, Amistad II and Amistad III with a total installed capacity of 100 MW each, and Amistad IV with an installed capacity of 149 MW, will be built in Acuña, in the northern State of Coahuila. Amistad II and III are expected to generate annually over 350 GWh each while avoiding the emission into the atmosphere of around 170,000 tonnes of CO2 each. Amistad IV is expected to generate more than 510 GWh per year, while avoiding the annual emission of around 234,000 tonnes of CO2 into the atmosphere. The 244 MW Dolores facility will be built in China, a municipality in the northeastern State of Nuevo León. The plant is expected to generate nearly 850 GWh each year, while avoiding the annual emission of nearly 390,000 tonnes of CO2 into the atmosphere.

The Enel Group is the largest renewable energy operator in Mexico in terms of installed capacity and project portfolio. The Group currently operates 728 MW, of which 675 MW come from wind and 53 MW from hydropower. It is currently building in the State of Coahuila the 754 MW Villanueva solar project, which is the largest PV facility under construction in the Americas and Enel’s largest solar project worldwide, the 200 MW Amistad wind farm, also in the State of Coahuila, and the 238 MW Don José PV project in the State of Guanajuato. The Group will also build the 93 MW Salitrillos wind project in the state of Tamaulipas.

Enel has recently signed agreements for the sale, under a "Build, Sell and Operate" (“BSO”) model, of 80% of the share capital of a newly formed holding company (“Holdco”), owner of the entire capital of eight special purpose vehicles that hold 429 MW of renewable plants in operation and 1,283 MW of projects under construction, to the Canadian institutional investor Caisse de dépot et placement du Québec and to the investment vehicle of the leading Mexican pension funds CKD Infraestructura México S.A. de C.V. Under the agreements, Enel will continue to manage the operating plants and will complete those still under construction. In addition, as of January 1st, 2020, Enel may transfer additional projects to the Holdco. As a result of these possible transfers, it could therefore increase its interest in the Holdco until it becomes the majority shareholder. The closing of the transaction, subject to a number of pending ordinary conditions and receipt of the necessary authorisation from the Mexican antitrust authorities, is expected to occur by the end of 2017.

Enel Green Power, the renewable energies division of the Enel Group, is dedicated to the development and operation of renewables in 24 countries, with a presence in Europe, the Americas, Asia, Africa and Oceania. Enel Green Power is a global leader in the green energy sector with a managed capacity of around 40 GW across a generation mix that includes wind, solar, geothermal, biomass and hydropower, and is at the forefront of integrating innovative technologies into renewable power plants.

1 The body in charge of managing Power Purchase Agreements from the tender between sellers and public/private buyers.