Colombia ratchets up hydro generation despite demand dip

Colombian hydroelectric power generation jumped 9% last month as higher rainfall replenished key water catchment areas, according to wholesale electricity market coordinator and grid operator XM. 

Hydropower plants dispatched 156.16GWh/d to the national grid in March, up from 143.09GWh/d in February, XM said in its latest bulletin. 

The Oriente region in the country's east reported the sharpest rise in hydroelectricity output compared to February followed by Centro and Antioquia.

Plants that utilize dams contributed 82.9% to Colombia's total renewable energy for the month while run-of-the-river facilities accounted for 15.0%. Biomass made up 1.5%, solar 0.5% and wind 0.1%.

Source: XM

Despite the hydropower ramp-up, overall electricity generation dipped 3.2% month-on-month to 195.55GWh/d as slowing economic activity eroded demand.

Meanwhile fossil fuel-fired generation slid to 36.04GWh/d from 55.34GWh/d in February. Plants using locally produced natural gas were responsible for 61.9% of total conventional thermal generation followed by coal (36.3%) and imported gas (1.74%). 

“In the month of March, the impact of the La Niña phenomenon was felt more strongly, reflected in greater contributions to hydroelectric generation," XM national dispatch manager Jaime Zapata said. 

"For its part, generation from non-renewable sources had a decrease of 34.87% compared to February. Likewise [outbound] exchanges with Ecuador showed significant growth, going from 7.49GWh in February to 165.53GWh in March," he added. 

 Source: XM