Venezuela unveils plans to beef up thermopower capacity

Venezuelan will add 150MW of generation capacity to its General Rafael Urdaneta thermal plant next month as part of a plan to reinforce electricity supply in western Zulia state, according to state-run utility Corpoelec.

Work is also underway to reactivate two turbines totaling 120MW at the nearby Ramón Laguna plant.

In addition, Corpoelec announced it is close to bringing online generating units at the Santa Bárbara and Casigua thermal plants with combined capacity of 45MW, while installing three turbines ceded by state oil company PDVSA at the Ramón Laguna plant.

In the medium term the company is seeking to reactivate three units at the San Lorenzo thermopower plant totaling 50MW and bring online a 100MW station at a PDVSA facility in San Timoteo.

"Work is already advanced and we have met with the people at PDVSA, who have everything ready to begin procurement of equipment and technical staff," said Neuro Leal, the regional manager for Corpoelec subsidiary Generación Occidental.

The projects coincide with dire energy shortages that have forced electricity rationing and rolling blackouts in the oil-rich country.

According to the democratic action party, some 18,221 outages were registered nationwide in 2017, with the number rising in recent months amid a series of transmission problems in the country's north.