Ecuador’s ministry of energy and non-renewable natural resources has decided to re-schedule the international tender to award concessions for new wind and solar power infrastructure due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The call for tenders will award concessions to private investors to build and operate the 200-MW El Aromo solar photovoltaic (PV) park and the Villonaco II and III wind farms totalling 110 MW of installed capacity.
The whole process, which started in late August 2019, was due to be concluded on April 15 2020, according to the previous timetable.
On Tuesday, the ministry said it had extended the deadline for the remaining steps in the process because the current health crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic is affecting the normal development of activities worldwide.
The deadline to submit envelopes with offers has been extended until July 30, while the decision on the outcome of the process will be known on September 17 2020.
The winner of the El Aromo PV project will be granted a concession for 20 years. The concession for Villonaco II and III, as one wind project, will last 25 years.
The ministry expects these projects will draw private investments totalling some USD 400 million (EUR 367.9m).
Last October, the ministry said that the tender had attracted interest from 22 companies from ten countries. The following month, nine companies passed the pre-qualification round, with six of them qualified to bid for both projects.
