USD 24 Million Power Grid Project in San Juan Province, Argentina Commences Operation

en.Wedoany.com Reported - On October 8, San Juan Province, Argentina, announced the construction and operational status of power infrastructure in the southern part of the Sarmiento department. The local government, through the Electric Power Infrastructure Development Fund (PIEDE), has invested a cumulative total of approximately USD 24 million to build the San Juan Sur substation, construct new 132 kV high-voltage transmission lines and 33 kV medium-voltage lines, and expand the Cañada Honda substation. The aforementioned facilities have been successively put into operation, forming a transmission and distribution network connecting the southern part of the province, while also connecting to the San Juan Sur photovoltaic power plant, which was built with an investment of approximately USD 110 million by Genneia.

The San Juan Sur substation is located in Retamito and adopts voltage levels of 132/33/13.2 kV, with a planned transformation capacity of 140 MVA. EPRE completed energization of the substation on December 24, 2025, with an initial operational transformation capacity of 70 MVA. On January 6, 2026, the station entered the commercial operation phase. The Cañada Honda substation additionally added a 30 MVA transformer, doubling its original transformation capacity, and was simultaneously equipped with control, switching, and relay protection equipment.

The transmission project includes a 132 kV double-circuit high-voltage line extending from Calle 7 in the Pocito area to the San Juan Sur substation, with a total length of approximately 64 km, connecting to the existing Rawson—Pocito—La Bebida transmission system and forming part of the 132 kV ring network in the southern part of the province. Another 33 kV medium-voltage line is approximately 21 km long, running from the new substation to the Sarmiento Sur switching station, undertaking the task of regional medium-voltage power transmission.

The grid-connection facilities also connect to the San Juan Sur photovoltaic power plant built by Genneia. The project installs approximately 250,000 bifacial photovoltaic modules and covers an area of approximately 500 hectares. Genneia's latest investor materials list its installed capacity as 129 MW, with commercial operation in June 2026. The power plant is connected to the grid through the San Juan Sur substation, with electricity mainly serving large industrial and commercial users in Argentina's long-term renewable energy contract market.

According to operational statistics published by EPRE, complaints in the Sarmiento area caused by damaged electrical equipment and irrigation pumps totaled 42 during the 2024–2025 summer and decreased to 5 during the 2025–2026 summer, a decline of approximately 88%. The relevant transmission and distribution facilities currently serve the electricity needs of local residents, commercial users, as well as olive, pistachio, grape cultivation, and other agricultural processing enterprises.