The value of the order is approximately EUR 30 million. The project was signed in July and it is included in Wartsila’s order book in the third quarter of 2016.

Argentina is suffering from energy shortage due to a history of widespread subsidies that have distorted the energy price and regulations that have complicated investments in power generation and distribution. Now the government seeks to remedy the issue by investing heavily in new capacity, focusing especially on increasing efficiency and adding renewable energy.

Sullair Argentina was awarded the Caimancito power plant project in the CAMMESA governmental bid in Argentina. They selected Wärtsilä as their equipment supplier because of Wärtsilä’s efficiency and fast delivery time.

“This is a complicated project but we trust in Wartsila’s project management capabilities and the technical expertise they can provide. The government was originally tendering for dual-fuel engines but we offered an alternative solution with Wärtsilä’s gas engines and we won. Wärtsilä had engines in stock and they promised that the plant will be operational within a year,” says Luis Vago, Director of Operations at Sullair.

The Caimacinto plant will be situated in the north west of Argentina and reinforce the grid in the area. Due to the long distances and the weight and height constraints along the road, Wärtsilä’s engines will be transported to the site in parts and be reassembled there. The area where the plant will be situated is hot and rainy which poses additional challenges on the project team.

“The delivery time was key to our customer and we have long expertise in doing projects in challenging areas. We are very happy to work together with Sullair Argentina and we are looking forward to do more projects together in the future,” says Gaston Giani, Business Development manager at Wartsila.

The equipment for the Caimancito power plant is expected to be delivered during 2016 and the plant will be fully operational in June 2017.