ICE Begins Grid Connection of Los Tecales 20 MW Solar Plant in Guanacaste

The Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad (ICE) began connection maneuvers on July 23 for the Los Tecales solar plant, rated at 20 megawatts (MW), to Costa Rica's National Electrical System (SEN) in the canton of Nandayure, Guanacaste province. The facility, developed by private company Solar Generation Sur S.A., will enter commercial operation once technical integration tests are complete.

Los Tecales is the first of five private solar projects awarded by ICE in April 2024 under Law 7200 (which authorizes private generation for exclusive sale to ICE) to reach the connection phase. Together, the five projects total 86 MW, at a purchase price of $0.05626 per kilowatt-hour (kWh), according to pv magazine Latam. The addition of this solar capacity is particularly significant for a system where more than 60% of generation comes from hydroelectric sources: during the 2024 El Niño event, ICE lacked these solar megawatts to offset reduced hydroelectric availability, a risk pattern shared by other high-hydro-dependency systems across the region.

Marco Acuña, president of Grupo ICE, described the project as "key to meeting rising energy demand in the face of El Niño," as reported by La Nación. ICE's expansion plan calls for incorporating 270 MW of solar between 2024 and 2026, plus 122 MW of wind and 20 MW of biomass. The institute is also developing three solar plants of its own: Colorado ICE (66 MW), Las Delicias (78 MW), and San Antonio (10 MW). Solar generation currently accounts for less than 0.5% of Costa Rica's electricity demand, making these projects a meaningful scale shift for the technology in the country.

Once technical tests are cleared, Los Tecales will begin commercial operation. The four remaining projects in the 2024 batch (Numu, 20 MW; Colorado, 16 MW; Los Mangos, 10 MW; and Las Cañas, 20 MW) will come online in a staggered sequence, adding 86 MW of private solar capacity to Costa Rica's grid this year and reducing the system's exposure to hydrological variability.

This article was drafted with artificial intelligence assistance from verified sources and reviewed by a human editor prior to publication.