The Group’s Engineering Unit (formerly Gas Natural Fenosa Engineering, now Gas Natural Generation Engineering and Development) won the contracts for consulting and international technological advisory services on the Sere and García Moreno wind farms.
Project management, engineering and construction supervision for the 100 MW Sere wind farm owned by the South African electric company Eskom.
Pre-feasibility and feasibility studies for the García Moreno wind farm, with 35 MW of gross electric power, being developed by the Government of Ecuador through the institutions of its Ministry of Electricity and Renewable Energies and the National Pre-investment Institute.
International consulting
The Group’s engineering unit has been providing technical advisory services for wind power to international electric companies and the Government of Ecuador since 2002.
- Sere wind farm, South Africa
- Pre-feasibility and feasibility study for the García Moreno wind farm, Ecuador
Engineering services
Engineering services were provided over a three-year period for four million euros, consisting of the following:
Assessment of wind resources available at the site
Selection of the wind technology to be installed in the wind farm.
Technical assistance for awarding and signing the main construction contracts in the following packages: BoP of the wind farm, civil engineering works for several buildings and BoP of the electrical substation and interconnecting electrical line.
Review of detailed engineering
Supervision of construction and start-up
Project management.
Project development
Three teams were put together for project development:
- Expat Spanish team in South Africa: comprising the in-country project manager, the quality expert, the health, safety and environment expert, the planning and cost control expert, the electrical engineering expert, the wind turbine assembly expert and the site manager.
- Local South African team supporting the Spanish team: comprising one civil engineering expert, two secretaries and one technical assistant.
- Spanish team located in Madrid: comprising the Madrid-based project manager and a group of technical experts from all the engineering areas involved: wind resource, expert in wind turbines, civil and electrical engineering, and experts in health, quality and the environment.
The contract also included an ambitious training plan for Eskom staff, aimed at providing their engineers with the know-how they require. The training plan consisted of giving several courses on different subjects related to assessment and analysis of wind resources, and managing, engineering and construction of wind farms. The courses were given by professionals from Gas Natural Fenosa’s Engineering Group.
The construction and start-up of the Sere wind farm was a major milestone for Eskom, as it is its first high-power wind energy project and one of the largest in South Africa. The project was funded by the World Bank, which carried out continual audits and visits to verify its evolution and construction.
Timeline
Some of the project’s major milestones include:
Awards
The Sere wind farm project has been recognised with several awards:
Wind Energy Pioneer Award
Green Grand Prix Award
Eskom Best Project of 2015.
Moreover, the Sere wind farm project was the first technical services provision contract for the Eskom electric company, which is Africa’s largest utility, generating 95% of the power in the country of South Africa and 45% on the continent overall. The know-how of the Gas Natural Fenosa engineering group (acquired over more than 20 years of experience in the field of wind power in Spain) was key to the project’s success, including methodologies for project development during design phases and during project management, construction, supervision and start-up.
Project fact file
| Project name: | Sere wind farm |
| Where: | Koekenaap, 340 km north of Cape Town, Western Cape province (South Africa) |
| When: | From March 2012 to March 2014 |
| Customer: | Eskom |
| Brief description: | 100 MW wind farm comprising 46 wind turbines with 2.3 MW of rated power each, hub height of 115 metres and rotor diameter of 108 metres. |
Basic parameters: | |
| Number of wind turbines: | 46 units with Siemens SWT 108 technology |
| Wind turbine power: | 2.3 MW |
| Hub height: | 115 metres |
| Rotor diameter: | 108 metres |
| Blade length: | 53 metres |
| Total/rated electrical power: | 105.8 / 100 MW |
| Length of roads: | 24 km |
| 132 kV interconnecting electrical line: | 44 km in length |
| 132 kV electrical substation: | Double position line-transformer 2 x 80 MVA. |
| Net/annual operational hours: | 3,200 hours |
| Energy produced: | 320 GWh/year |
| Investment budget: | 190 million USD |
