Acciona breaks ground on 64MW project in Chile’s Atacama

Acciona's current renewable pipeline should see its portfolio hit the 700MW mark next year (Credit: Acciona)

Acciona Energy has made strides with its clean energy pipeline in Chile, with construction now underway for a PV project in the Atacama Desert.

The firm recently broke ground on the 64MW Usya installation, located on a 105-hectare site in the Calama municipality.

Some 400 people will work to build the farm in the Antofagasta region, designed to supply 146GWh of energy and create CO₂ emission savings of 141,000 tonnes every year.

The plant will feature 187,000-plus modules on fixed structures once it is powered up, which is scheduled to happen in mid-2020.

The renewable project is one in four Acciona said last April it would develop in Chile, with plans to bring the 400MW pipeline online between this year and next.

Usya (64MW) will be delivered alongside also-PV project Almeyda (62MW) – slated for construction in the Atacama municipality of Diego de Almagro – and a further 270MW across two wind plants.

Together with existing solar and wind projects, the 400MW four under construction should take Acciona's Chilean renewable portfolio to 700MW. 

Acciona’s utility-scale projects come to boost an already bustling pipeline in Atacama, with neighbours including Mainstream (293MW), Sonnedix (171MW) and Solarpack (123MW).

The Madrid-headquartered firm is also busy deploying beyond Chile’s borders, with recent progress for a 250MW project in Australia, a 186MW partnership in Egypt and several schemes in Ukraine.

Tags: chile, south america, latin america, acciona, acciona energia, acciona energy, solar pv, utility-scale pv, utility-scale solar, pv power plants, mainstream, mainstream renewable power, sonnedix, solarpack