Abengoa to construct $165 million wind farm in Uruguay

Abengoa has secured a contract from the Uruguayan state electricity company (UTE) to construct and operate a $165 million wind farm in the country.

Planned to be built in Palomas, in the Salto Department, the 70MW wind farm will feature 35 two megawatt wind turbines that will generate enough energy to supply to the city of Salto.

Abengoa will be responsible for the development, engineering and construction of the plant, as well as its operation and maintenance for a 20 year period.

Construction of the wind farm is anticipated to commence in early 2014 and will take 14 months to complete.

Abengoa said it now has two 50MW wind farms that it has been secured in Uruguay.

The first, in Peralta in the Tacuarembó Department, is in the final stage of construction, while works at the second site, in Cerro Colorado in the Flores Department, are about to commence.

Both projects have signed 20-year power purchase agreements with the UTE.

Abengoa said the latest contract will expand its presence in Uruguay, where it has been working since 1980 and has developed several projects.

Some of the projects include the extension and remodelling of the drinking water plant in Aguas Corrientes and the frequency converter stations in the cities of Rivera and Melo.