LaGeo celebrates 50 years of Ahuachapan geothermal power station in El Salvador
LaGeo has celebrated 50 years of the Ahuachapan Unit 1 geothermal power plant in El Salvador, a testament to the longevity of geothermal power projects.
Although about a month ago now, state-owned geothermal developer and operator LaGeo just recently celebrated the 50th year anniversary of the start of operations of Unit 1 of the Ahuachapan geothermal power plant in El Salvador.
Construction of the 30-MW Ahuachapan Unit 1 started in 1972, and the facility started operations in 1975. This has made the company a pioneer for geothermal in the region and has put El Salvador in a position of leadership in Central America.
The turbine rotor of Unit 1 was replaced in 2020 by a new one supplied by Mitsubishi. The need to replace the unit after almost 30 years is a testament to the excellent maintenance and operations by the team at LaGeo. Today, the facility has two more units – the 30-MW Unit 2 from Mitsubishi, and the 35-MW Unit 3 from Fuji.
Furthermore, the power plant has provided employment opportunities to the nearby communities. More than 25% of the jobs are currently held by women, performing various technical and specialized work. LaGeo has also played a crucial role in spreading geothermal knowledge by offering diploma courses for participants in the Latin America and the Caribbean region.
Aside from Ahuachapan, LaGeo also operates the 110-MW Berlin geothermal power station, which will be further expanded later this year with a 7-MW binary geothermal power plant. Further, early efforts have started for a new geothermal power plant in Chinameca which will have an initial 20-MW capacity and a planned 50-MW expansion.
Source: Diario El Salvador
