Celeo Seeks Route Modification for Peru-Ecuador Transmission Link as Construction Phase Approaches

Celeo Redes, controlled by Spanish group Elecnor with 51 percent and Dutch pension fund APG holding 49 percent, has filed a technical support report with Peru’s Senace environmental agency to modify a segment of the 500 kV Piura Nueva-Frontera transmission line in Talara, Piura region. The company established local entity Puerto Maldonado Transmisora de Energía to execute the Peru-Ecuador electrical interconnection project. The proposed modification reduces the transmission line length from 269.664 kilometers to 269.587 kilometers, cutting 77 meters from the approved route. The new alignment aims to avoid interference with public and private initiatives, reduce land use conflicts, and improve compatibility with territorial development in the affected zone, according to the technical filing.

The route optimization requires relocating seven transmission towers and removing one structure from the affected segment. Seven towers will be moved and renamed, while structures designated E189A and E199A remain in original positions. Infrastructure adjustments include constructing permanent access roads to six towers, improving existing routes for towers E190B and E191C, and creating temporary construction access for structures E193B, E196B, and E197B. The technical report states these modifications preserve essential technical characteristics and generate no additional environmental impacts beyond those evaluated in the detailed environmental impact study.

The project’s total investment reaches S/ 108.4 million, allocated across S/ 97.6 million for construction, S/ 1.1 million for operation and maintenance, and S/ 9.8 million for infrastructure decommissioning. This represents a slight increase from amounts approved in the original environmental study, though the filing does not specify costs attributable solely to proposed modifications. The construction timeline remains unchanged at 21 months, followed by a 30-year operation period and 12-month decommissioning phase. IDB Invest has separately disclosed financing for Celeo’s Peru transmission assets totaling USD 56.5 million, covering the Piura-Ecuador border line, a 138 kV Puerto Maldonado-Iberia line, and the Chira Valley substation in Piura. The multilateral lender categorized the combined projects as environmental and social risk Category B, indicating limited, site-specific impacts that are reversible and mitigable.