Reventazón, Costa Rica
Commissioning of largest hydropower plant in Costa Rica
In February 2019, the Final Acceptance Certificate ("Finiquito") for the Reventazón main hydropower plant in Siquirres, Costa Rica was mutually signed between Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad (ICE) and ANDRITZ Hydro.
With an installed capacity of 321 MW, Reventazón is the largest hydropower plant not only in Costa Rica, but also in Central America. The contract has been awarded in October 2011 for a project execution of five years. All five turbine-generating units (including the Ecological Unit) started commercial operation already in 2016. Since starting commercial operation, the project has led Costa Rica to achieve a target of generating 100% of its electricity from renewable energy sources.
ANDRITZ Hydro with teams of Italy and Austria supplied the electro-mechanical equipment consisting of four Francis turbines and main inlet valves, penstock butterfly valve, four generators, mechanical and electrical auxiliary equipment, control, excitation and protection systems as well as a turnkey 15 MW Eco unit in a separate powerhouse.
In May 2019, the IHA (International Hydropower Association) awarded the Reventazón hydropower plant with the Blue Planet Prize. This prize is given to a hydropower project which demonstrates excellence across a range of social, environmental, technical and economic performance criteria. ANDRITZ Hydro is proud to be part of this project and to support the customer the Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad (ICE), Costa Rica’s national electricity company, which built, owns and operates Reventazón.
The successful execution of this important project underlines once again the successful position of ANDRITZ Hydro in Costa Rica and strengthens our position for future projects with ICE in the entire Central American region.