Enel Green Power

Enel Green Power has a total 9.9 GW of wind power capacity, representing 23,1% of the total capacity; hydroelectric capacity was 28.1 GW (65,6% of the total); geothermal power 0.9 GW (2.1% of the total); solar power 3.9 GW (9.1% of the total); and electricity from biomass 0.06 GW (0.1% of the total).

Enel Green Power runs 35 geothermal power plants in Tuscany, with a total capacity of about 776,2 MW, that are able meet more than 30% of the regional consumption.[15][16] Amongst those, the plant of Larderello, built in 1904, is currently one of the largest in the world.[17][18][19]

In the United States Enel Green Power operates three power plants, one of which is a solar-geothermal hybrid. Two of them are located in Churchill County, Nevada, and one is near Cove Fort, Utah.[20][21][22]

In Chile the company is finalizing Cerro Pabellon being first commercial geothermal power plant of South America and the highest worldwide at 4500 m a.s.l.[23].

Enel Green Power brought online in 2015 Cornia 2, in Castelnuovo Val di Cecina, Pisa (Tuscany). Cornia 2 is the world's first geothermal-biomass hybrid plant, where the biomass, which comes from agriculture and related activities within 70 km from the plant itself, contribute to heat the geothermal steam up to over double its usual temperature (from 150–160 °C to 370–380 °C), thus increasing the electricity production capacity by 5 MW on top of the current 13 MW.[24][25][26][27][28][29][30][31][32]

Enel Green Power has designed and built the first solar-geothermal hybrid plant, that combines the two sources of energy thus increasing the electricity production capacity. The first power plant of this kind, the Stillwater site, is located in Fallon, Nevada (USA), and has received $40 million in tax relief under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.[33][34]

In the first half of 2014 work began to integrate a solar thermal power plant to the structure, which will add an additional capacity of 26 MW to the current net capacity of 33 MW.[35][36][37]

In the second half of 2014, Enel Green Power has partnered with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and the Idaho National Laboratory (INL), under the supervision of the US Department of Geothermal Technologies Office (GTO), via a cooperative research and development agreement, in order to use the data of the Stillwater plant to further develop the technology.[38][39]

The company also operates in the solar thermal and concentrated solar power (CSP), participating in research and development activities along with ENEA. Based on the studies of Nobel laureate Carlo Rubbia, in 2010 Enel Green Power built the Archimede combined cycle power plant in Priolo Gargallo in Sicily, with a total capacity of 5 MW. In the plant, parabolic mirrors focus the sun's heat on a fluid of molten salts that reaches temperatures of over 500 °C/932 °F and is able to retain heat for several hours, turning water into steam that then activates the traditional steam turbines system to produce electricity. The objective is to increase the efficiency of this type of plants so as to make them competitive compared to other sources.[40][41][42][43][44][45][46]

In Panama, the company runs the plants of Fortuna, in Chiriquí, which produces 300 MW and covers about 25% of the entire national production of electricity. The plant is located in the Fortuna Forest Reserve.

Enel Green Power's experience with wind power dates back to 1984, when Enel built the first Italian wind farm in Sardinia. In October 2008, in Kansas, US, the Smoky Hills Wind Farm, with a capacity of 250 MW, came into service, while in January 2008 in Snyder, Texas, Enel Green Power completed the installation of 21 wind turbines of 3 MW each.

In 2014, in Ollagüe, Chile, Enel Green Power began the construction of a mini hybrid solar-wind cogeneration plant for the production of both electricity and hot water, which runs independently from the national electricity system and is able to meet the average need of 150 families with an average capacity of 232 kW.

At the end of 2014, Enel Green Power and DCNS were appointed by CORFO (Corporación de Fomento de la Producción) in Chile to research and develop new technologies for the use of marine energy. The Marine Energy Research and Innovation Centre (MERIC) was built to carry out the assignment.

More than half of Enel Green Power's plants are located in Italy, for a net installed capacity of around 14,321 MW. The production mix includes geothermal power, hydroelectricity, wind power, solar power and biomass power.

Enel Green Power is also a leader in geothermal, with 35 power plants located in Tuscany, representing a capacity of 728 MW and providing an annual production of over 6 billion kWh. The company is a world reference for this technology. It initiated its first center in the area of Larderello in Tuscany, as early as the beginning of last century.

Wind energy has had the greatest growth in Italy since the beginning of the 21st century, including ENEL facilities.

In the field of solar energy, Enel Green Power developed the franchisee model in Italy of Enel Green Power Retail. In addition, a thin-film photovoltaic panels factory was inaugurated in 2011 in Catania, through a joint venture with Sharp and STMicroelectronics. The generation of electricity from solar energy is coming from 67 MW installed in 2011, (data as of the end of September).

Enel Green Power has facilities in the Iberian Peninsula thorough a total installed capacity of 6,293 MW and 120 plants. This presence is the result of the integration of renewable energy activities of Enel and Endesa. The wind technology, with about 79 plants, has a net installed capacity of 1,646MW. The production mix includes hydroelectric energy with about 139 plants for 4633 MW, solar with 5 plants for 13 MW, and biomass with 1 plant representing 0.5 MW.

Enel Green Power has substantial presence in Romania: it has 8 operating wind farms with an installed capacity of 499 MW and 4 photovoltaic plants with a capacity of 36 MW. Enel Green Power is also present in Bulgaria with two wind farms representing 42 MW.

Enel Green Power is present in Greece, with 18 wind farms for a net installed capacity of 200 MW, 5 hydroelectric plants for 19 MW and 28 photovoltaic plants for 88 MW.

In North America, Enel Green Power has an overall capacity of 2,316 MW across four technologies. In the United States Enel Green Power owns 51 hydroelectric plants (191 MW of managed capacity), 25 wind farms (1814 MW of managed capacity), 22 photovoltaic plants (175 MW of managed capacity) and 3 geothermal plants (33 MW of managed capacity). In Canada it has 2 wind farms (103 MW of managed capacity).

European Southern Observatory (ESO) and Enel Green Power officials at the entry into service of the La Silla Observatory photovoltaic power station in northern Chile.[47]

Enel Green Power has a presence in Central and South America with 152 plants spread across Mexico, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Argentine, Colombia, Peru, Panama, Chile and Brazil. Enel Green Power currently has 16 plants in Mexico, with a managed capacity of 1592 MW and a production mix that includes hydroelectric, wind and solar energy. In Costa Rica, EGP has 4 hydroelectric plants with a managed capacity of 81 MW. EGP is present in Guatemala with 5 plants and a managed capacity of 1592 MW, including wind, hydroelectric and solar energy. In Panama, EGP has 7 plants, divided between hydroelectric and solar, with a managed capacity of 354 MW. EGP also produces green energy in Chile, with 39 plants divided between wind farms, hydroelectric, solar and geothermal. The total managed capacity is 4873 MW. In Brazil, EGP has 56 plants and a managed capacity of 2530 MW, coming from wind, hydroelectric and solar energy. In Argentina, EGP has 2 hydroelectric plants and a managed capacity of 1328 MW. In Colombia, EGP has 13 plants, a managed capacity of 3075 MW and a production combination that includes hydroelectric and solar energy. In Peru, EGP has 10 plants and a managed capacity of 1220 MW, coming from wind, hydroelectric and solar energy.