The Canal de Isabel II will allocate a total of 19.4 million euros until 2015 to a plan to improve energy efficiency with which it aims to increase its production of renewable energies.
This was announced on Tuesday by the regional vice president and president of the Canal, Ignacio González, during his visit to the Pedrezuela mini-hydroelectric plant, where he has advanced that with this plan, the Canal will be able to produce 50 percent of the energy needed by its facilities and save up to 20 percent in the purchase of electricity from the market.
González, who has been accompanied during his visit by the Minister of Environment, Housing and Territorial Planning, Ana Isabel Mariño, as well as by the mayor of Pedrezuela, Sagrario de la Fuente, recalled that the entity he presides over is, at present, the largest producer of renewable energy in the region, since it generates 162 million kilowatt hours of energy, equivalent to the domestic electricity consumption of a population of 110,000 inhabitants (such as Alcobendas) in a year.
The plan presented on Tuesday will be articulated in three programs to increase the power generation capacity, renovate the least efficient facilities in terms of consumption and review the operational processes and the purchase and sale of energy.
Regarding the creation of new facilities, González has indicated that the Canal plans to build a mini-hydroelectric plant in the Valmayor reservoir, as well as the increase in the production capacity of those of Navallar and Torrelaguna.
Biogas motor generators will also be installed in eight treatment plants that could be Torrejón, Reguera, Sotogutiérrez, Guadarrama Medio, Navalcarnero, Alcalá Este, Alcalá Oeste and El Endrinal, and the commissioning of microturbines in distribution networks to take advantage of the pressure generated by the water in the pipes.
GENERATES 36% OF THE ENERGY IT CONSUMES
In 2010, the Canal facilities produced 162 million kilowatt hours of energy, which is equivalent to the annual domestic consumption of a population like Alcobendas, with 110,000 inhabitants.
To this end, it has eight mini-power plants such as the one visited by the vice president, 11 biogas facilities in treatment plants and the sludge treatment and composting plant in Loeches.
The regional spokesman also explained that the company recovers 36 percent of the energy it consumes, and last year managed to consume 3.5 percent less electricity. However, with the implementation of the new plan and when the Loeches plant becomes fully operational, it will be able to generate more than 50 percent of the energy it consumes.
In order to produce this energy, the Canal has the mini-power plants, which produced 85,760 kilowatt hours in 2010. In addition, it has the biogas electricity generation plants, with 62,323 kilowatt hours last year, as well as a thermal drying composting plant with cogeneration associated with the thermal drying process of the sewage sludge in Loeches, which will be able to generate up to 154 million kilowatt hours of energy.
All these electricity generation technologies are environmentally friendly, due to their renewable origin and waste management. In this sense, during 2010 and due to the generation of electricity through these facilities, 52,700 tons of CO2 have been avoided being emitted into the atmosphere.
CENTRAL DE PEDREZUELA
The Pedrezuela plant was built at the foot of this dam, between the municipalities of Pedrezuela and Guadalix de la Sierra. The construction of the facility, which entered service in 2009 with an investment of 2.5 million euros, co-financed with Feder Funds, was done to take advantage of the hydroelectric jump produced by the waters discharged into the El Vellón Canal.
The design has established a nominal flow of three cubic meters per second and a jump of 29 meters. With these characteristics, 2.4 million KWh were generated during 2010.
In their operation, these facilities take advantage of the jump produced by the discharge of water to produce electrical energy through the use of an electromechanical group, consisting of a turbine and a synchronous generator. (EUROPA PRESS)
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