One of the installations undertaken in the Latin American region is located at Colegio Agustiniano in Mixco, Guatemala City, Guatemala. The project comprises 100 QT2 units with an anticipated expansion. Currently, it generates 220 kW to supply electrical energy to the institution. Contact online >>
One of the installations undertaken in the Latin American region is located at Colegio Agustiniano in Mixco, Guatemala City, Guatemala. The project comprises 100 QT2 units with an anticipated expansion. Currently, it generates 220 kW to supply electrical energy to the institution.
In operation since 2000, TECO Energy Inc.’s 132-MW San José Power Station was the first coal-fired power plant built in Central America and is still the largest one. Used as a baseload plant, the facility successfully combines high availability with a business model that promotes sustainable environmental practices and a safe workplace.
A representative democracy, Guatemala has a population of approximately 13,550,440. Sugar production, textiles and clothing, furniture, chemicals, petroleum, metals, rubber, and tourism are its main industries. Guatemala’s electricity production and consumption were approximately 8.425 billion kWh and 7.115 billion kWh (2007 estimates), respectively. Recent statistics show that the country exports approximately 131.9 million kWh of electricity annually.
In order to promote increased prosperity in Guatemala, the most populous Central American nation, abundant and reliable electricity is required. To meet this growing need, TECO Energy Inc. and two partners started construction of the San José Power Station in 1998 as an investment. During construction, TECO bought out the other partners to become the sole owner. The plant was commissioned by the end of 1999 and went commercial on January 19, 2000 (Figure 1).
“The San José Power Station has a 15-year power purchase agreement with the local distribution utility for the first 120 MW and has another 12 MW available to sell to the spot market,” Mauricio de la Torre, the San José Power Station plant manager, told POWER. “Since the plant began commercial operation, it has been dispatched on a baseload basis, with very little load swings through the year. The plant keeps a very high PPA availability of above 96%.”
The San José Power Station is located near the town of Masagua, Guatemala, about 75 kilometers (km, 47 miles) south of Guatemala City, the nation’s capital. Included in the project’s scope is a fuel-receiving facility located at Puerto Quetzal on the Pacific Coast, 40 km away.
The plant was constructed under a contract with J.A. Jones Construction and Black & Veatch International on a turnkey basis. The project included port modifications to accommodate the importation of coal, as well as a transmission line to connect the plant to the Alborada substation.
The plant has a DB Riley, coal-fired furnace with three duplex, Atrita pulverizers feeding 12 burners in three rows of four burners each. The boiler feeds about 1,200 kpph of 1,000F/1,905 psia superheated steam to the turbine.
The single-flow, 11-stage Mitsubishi turbine has five steam extractions and a closed-loop condensing system that utilizes cooling water from a four-section cooling tower. The generator is a 160-MVA, three-phase, 60-Hz, brushless generator made by Brush (England), directly coupled to the high-pressure side of the turbine. The plant also has a 43.2-MVAR capacitor bank to assist with reactive power.
“All the water used at the power plant comes from seven wells, with the main problem being a high silica content due to the fact that the plant is in a volcanic region of Guatemala,” de la Torre said.
Operating with an overall efficiency of 10,800 Btu/kWh, the plant generates close to 1,000 GWh annually. That total may vary, depending on the rainy season and the dispatch of hydro plants. Scheduled maintenance requires between 18 and 30 days per year, and the plant has an annual availability of approximately 98%.
Almost all the coal used at the plant comes from Colombia. It is unloaded at the plant’s unloading facility close to Puerto Quetzal on the Pacific Ocean and then is transported to the plant site by a company-owned fleet of trucks that make approximately 70 shipments per day, six days a week. At full load, the plant consumes about 1,300 tons of coal per day (Figure 4).
“Most of our coal comes from the Atlantic Coast of Colombia in South America. And because [the plant] is located on the Pacific coast, that means that each coal shipment goes through the Panama Canal,” de la Torre said. “We have used coal from Canada in the past, but the severe winters and higher price has discouraged us from using it.”
One limitation is that all coal vessels must be self-unloading, due to the design of the port facility, de la Torre pointed out. This requirement narrows the availability of coal transport vendors.
The San José plant is staffed by 76 employees, including the plant manager, an operations manager, a maintenance manager, eight staff engineers, miscellaneous office staff, and five shift crews each composed of eight workers. TPS Operaciones de Guatemala Ltd. is responsible for plant operations.
“We have found that technically prepared individuals are extremely difficult to find in a country whose main economy is based on agriculture,” de la Torre said. “In order to retain our staff, our company has a policy of keeping salaries and wages within the ‘top five’ in the country. Being the first coal-fired plant in the area requires a lot of training, and today only an 18-MW coal-fired plant has been added to the Guatemalan grid, although others are under construction.”
Another challenge is language, according to de la Torre. Most technical publications, books, and manuals are in English, so learning a second language has been a big challenge for the plant’s Spanish-speaking employees.
“The third challenge is to develop a culture of safety,” he said. “There are very low standards in the Guatemalan industry regarding safety and environmental compliance; however, there are several companies—including TECO Guatemala—with high standards. Creating a safe environment has required a continuous effort since day one.”
The San José plant adheres to Guatemalan and U.S. standards, including those enacted by the Environmental Protection Agency and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
TECO Guatemala invests time, resources, and money to train its team members by providing the tools for their personal and professional growth. TECO Guatemala also offers safety and first aid training to team members and their families, which mutually benefits the company and its employees.
TECO Guatemala has developed an excellent safety culture in-house with a lot of effort, de la Torre explained. The company believes in a healthy, clean, and safe environment, which is why it has environmental, health, and safety (EHS) programs that include ergonomics, occupational health and safety, and research of incidents. EHS training is conducted throughout the year and is based on activities that are being developed in the plant.
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