Colombia's Ecopetrol commissions 21-MWp solar farm

Colombian oil company Ecopetrol SA (NYSE:EC) on Friday put into service the 21-MWp Castilla solar photovoltaic (PV) park in Colombia's department of Meta.

Ecopetrol commissioned the construction from energy provider AES Colombia, of AES Corp (NYSE:AES), according to Friday's press release. AES is also to supply electricity under a 15-year power purchase agreement (PPA), and provide operation and maintenance (O&M) services at Castilla.

While the new solar park can generate enough electricity to meet the demand of a population of 27,000, its output will serve solely to cover some of the needs of Ecopetrol's Castilla oil field.

Located on a 18-hectare (44.5 acres) area in the municipality of Castilla La Nueva, the PV park required some USD 20 million (EUR 17.9m) in investments.

Ecopetrol CEO Felipe Bayon said at the inauguration that the Castilla solar park was a milestone for the company's energy transition process. Ecopetrol plans to increase its renewables capacity to more than 300 MW from 43 MW in the coming years.

In addition to the solar park, the company generates power from biomass and produces biofuels.

(USD 1 = EUR 0.90)

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