With 50 megawatts (MW) of power, UTE Prosperidade III is being built in Camaçari (BA) and is expected to start operating in the second half of 2022
In partnership with Imetame Termelétrica, Urca Comercializadora de Energia is enabling one of the largest carbon credit operations in the Brazilian energy market. 2,3 million tons of carbon equivalent were purchased from the Teles Pires hydroelectric plant (MT/PA), controlled by Neoenergia, in credits canceled in favor of UTE Prosperidade III, controlled by the Espírito Santo group Imetame. With this, the plant becomes the first carbon neutral thermoelectric plant in Brazil.
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It was a period of much interaction with the regulatory bodies, especially EPE, the Ministry of Mines and Energy and ANEEL, in which concentrated efforts culminated in this beautiful result for all.
The carbon credits were acquired in the process of voluntary cancellation of emissions, in a clear step forward in the sustainability actions of the plant's business groups involved in the initiative.
UHE Teles Pires is one of the most efficient plants in Brazil, generating clean energy that does not emit greenhouse gases
With 50 megawatts (MW) of power, UTE Prosperidade III is being built in Camaçari (BA) and is expected to start operating in the second half of 2022. Initially conceived to operate with biomass, the thermoelectric plant was adapted for natural gas, which required a total compensation plan for greenhouse gas emissions in order to obtain regulatory approval for the project.
"Teles Pires is one of the most efficient plants in Brazil, generating clean energy, which does not emit greenhouse gases, and generating credits that can help other companies offset their emissions. This project has been approved since 2012, demonstrating the solid commitment of Teles Pires and Neoenergia to contribute to the fight against climate change, by helping in the decarbonization process”, says the director of UHE Teles Pires, Ana Granato.
“The big difference is that we were able to put together a plan so that the emissions, which would be offset over the 23 years of the project, could be slaughtered in one go, an unprecedented feat in the carbon credit market and which demonstrates the speed of the entrepreneur before regulatory bodies” says Pedro Assumpção, partner at Urca Comercializadora.
“For us, the Imetame Group, and also for the Regulatory Bodies, the carbon neutralization by the Prosperidade III plant, which is under construction, was something unprecedented. Our group has in its essence the vocation for the development of its own social and environmental projects, such as the Reflorescer Program, which operates in the recovery of riparian forests. Thus, we understand that we are doing our part to build a better world”, says Director of Operations Giuliano Favalessa.
The contract was carried out using the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), a format for offsetting emissions created by the Kyoto Protocol. Through this initiative, the energy produced by the project generates carbon credits, the Certified Emission Reductions (CERs).
In all, UHE Teles Pires issued, in 2021, 4,9 million tons of carbon equivalent in credits, referring to the generation of renewable energy at the plant between 2017 and 2018. In addition to the contract with Urca, Neoenergia negotiated credits with companies from the Netherlands and India.
Neoenergia starts assembling the 103 GE turbines, 125 meters high, the equivalent of a 40-story building, of its largest wind farm in Northeast Brazil
Neoenergia continues to advance in the installation of the Oitis Wind Farm, located between Piauí and Bahia. The company has just started assembling the first turbines, which will produce clean energy at the plants in the 12 parks of the undertaking, which will be the company's largest in the country, with an installed capacity of 566,5 MW, enough to supply a city with 2,7 million inhabitants. In all, there will be 103 wind turbines, model GE 158, with a unit power of 5,5 MW, one of the most modern and efficient on the global market.
At 125 meters high, the equivalent of a 40-story building, the turbines will be assembled in two stages. This work lasts, on average, six days and involves around 30 professionals. The turbine components, such as blades and nacelles (the part that houses the power generator), began to be delivered in December, after a complex logistical challenge. The blades were manufactured in China and taken by ship to the Port of Suape (PE), from where they were taken by truck to the construction site, a process that takes approximately 60 days and needs to be repeated 19 times.
"We are in an accelerated pace of works to start the generation of clean energy in the Oitis Neoenergia Wind Farm, a strategic project for the expansion of Neoenergia's portfolio of renewables, which will reach 1,6 GW in its portfolio of wind assets this year. With the construction of the parks, we are also managing to stimulate the region’s economy, with the generation of jobs and income and the carrying out of socio-environmental actions”, says William Rodney, manager of Renewable Projects at Neoenergia.
Construction works of the plants of the largest wind complex of Neoenergia in Brazil generated around 1500 jobs
Construction work on the plants began in November 2020, three months ahead of the business plan. By December 2021, just over a year later, all 103 turbine foundations had been completed. Progress is also being made on the construction of the Oitis substation – which received its three transformers, each with a capacity of 230 MVA – and the 70-kilometer-long transmission line, both with a voltage of 500 kV. The two undertakings will connect the wind farms to the Queimada Nova II substation (PI), connection point to the National Interconnected System (SIN).
Furthermore, part of the civil works is the opening of 35 kilometers of road for access to the wind complex, which also represent a permanent benefit for the local population.
Residents of the region benefit from other socio-environmental actions, such as training courses. The construction of the plants has already generated around 1500 jobs, 40% of which are local labor.
The construction of the Oitis Neoenergia Wind Farm is in line with Neoenergia's positioning strategy in the liberalization of the Brazilian energy market. Of the parks' total installed capacity, 96% will be allocated to the Free Contracting Environment (ACL).
