Hidromaule

completed

_x000C_Hidromaule S.A. (Hidromaule or the company) is a start-up hydropower generation company owned by an Italian-Chilean consortium of professionals with substantial experience in the hydropower generation industry. The company’s initial project, Lircay, is a 20 Megawatt (MW) run-of-river hydropower project located along the Lircay River in the VII Region of Chile, approximately 30 km to the northeast of the city of Talca. The project is expected to have a construction period of approximately 18-24 months. The Lircay hydropower project takes advantage of water rights owned by the Canal Maule Association, a long-established irrigation group formed mainly by medium and small agriculturists and with approximately 2,200 shareholders. The Association utilizes water in the Maule River that is stored upstream in the Maule Reservoir, diverted at the Armerillo intake and distributed through two primary canals – Maule Norte Alto and Maule Norte Bajo. The Lircay project is made possible through a surplus of water during wet periods of the year and as a result of topographic relief at a point on the Maule Norte Bajo that over looks the confluence of the Corel and Lircay rivers. Up to 28.20 m3/sec of canal flow and a head of 107 meters are available at this location. During the season of irrigation (mid-September through mid-April) water is available for power generation only to the extent that flow exceeds irrigation requirements. The rest of the year water is available up to the 54.32 m3/sec of water rights owned by the Association. The company has used the 40-year period of record for flow in the Maule River to optimize the size of the Lircay plant for year-round operation. Infrastructure required for the Lircay project includes a diversion structure on the Maule Norte Bajo canal, a 2,950 meter-long canal to bring the diverted water to a point overlooking the powerhouse, a 520 meter long steel penstock pipe to the powerhouse, and a powerhouse with two Francis-type turbine-generator groups with a 9.7 MW capacity each. Water flow required for the powerhouse at full generating capacity is 22 m3/sec. As part of the project the company will also construct a 25 km transmission line to CGE’s Maule Substation in San Clemente.