Hydroelectric: efficiency and environmental protection at Fortuna

The hydroelectric plant in the province of Chiriqui (Panama), with a nominal output of 300 MW, generates some 1.6 billion kWh per year and is one of the country’s main power generation plants, producing nearly 25% of total output.

Operating the plant requires great expertise in environmental protection because it is located in the Fortuna Forest Reserve, one of Panama's largest, most highly protected nature reserves. At 20,000 hectares and made up primarily of rain forest, it has an extremely high level of biodiversity. It is also a part of the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor, and UNESCO has named it one of the world's Biosphere Reserves.

The electricity market in Panama, which was liberalized in 1997, is part of the broader Central American power market, which is undergoing economic and regulatory integration and is experiencing a period of rapid development, with the presence of a number of leading international players. For these reasons, too, Fortuna is an excellent foundation for the further development of Enel Green Power in the region.