Enel to build Guatemala hydro plant

EGP, which its parent Enel aims to place on the market this year, said the total investment in the project would be 185 million euros US $226.6 million, with 10 million euros coming from Italian public-private holding company Simest.

The new plant will use the natural water flow of the Cotzal river and its three tributaries and produce 370 million kilowatt hours of power a year avoiding emissions of 280,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide CO2, EGP and Simest said in a joint statement.

Enel group is already present in Guatemala's renewables sector and the new plant will boost EGP's existing "zero emission" generation capacity in the country by more than 140 percent, EGP Chairman Francesco Starace said in the statement.

EGP's installed capacity totals about 5,700 MW with more than 600 plants in operation in 16 countries in Europe and the Americas and a generation mix that includes wind, solar, hydro, geothermal and biomass.