Environmental Review Summary
Project Number
11637
Company Name
Central Lomas de Real S.A. de C.V.
Date ERS Disclosed
Sep 26, 2002
Country
Mexico
Region
Latin America and the Caribbean
Environmental Category
A - Significant
Status
Completed
Previous Events
Approved : Jun 12, 2003
Signed : Jul 23, 2003
Invested : Jun 22, 2004
Sector
Gas - Thermal Power Generation
Industry
other
Department
Regional Industry INF LAC & EUR
Project Description
Rio Bravo III is a $289 million project to develop a 495MW gas-fired combined cycle power plant (project) in the municipality of Valle Hermoso, the state of Tamaulipas, Mexico. The site is located in an agricultural area about 25km southwest from the city of Matamoros, at 18 km northeast from the Valle Hermoso municipality, and about 25km south of the international border with the United States of America. Rio Bravo III (Central Lomas de Real S.A. de C.V.) will be built on a site adjacent to the existing 495MW Rio Bravo II (Central Anahuac S.A. de C.V.), a gas-fired combined cycle power plant, and the site of the future 500MW Rio Bravo IV (Central Valle Hermoso S.A. de C.V.) a gas-fired combined cycle power plant. In late 2001, EDF International S.A. (EDFI), the project sponsor, won the bids for the project and the Rio Bravo IV project under a competitive bidding process organized by Mexico''s state-owned electricity utility, "Comision Federal de Electricidad" (CFE). Rio Bravo III and IV plants are planned to start commercial operation in 2004 and 2005 respectively. IFC helped finance Rio Bravo II in 2000, and is considering financing Rio Bravo III and IV projects.
Disclosure of EIAs for the project: CFE prepared an Environmental Impact Assessment (Manifestacion de Impacto Ambiental: MIA) for Rio Bravo III in June 2001, and for Rio Bravo IV in November 2001, based on CFE''s general project specifications. SEMARNAT, the Mexican environmental regulatory agency, disclosed the Executive Summary of the MIAs through their website (www.semarnat.gob.mx) on August 10, 2001 for Rio Bravo III and on December 14, 2001 for Rio Bravo IV. These two MIAs were reviewed by SEMARNAT. CFE received Environmental Impact authorizations for Rio Bravo III on October 31, 2001 and for Rio Bravo IV on May 9, 2002. CFE has transferred these authorizations to EDFI. EDFI retained URS-Dames and Moore de Mexico to prepare an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report to update the MIAs based on EDFI''s specific proposed design specifications and to carry out public consultation activities in accordance with the World Bank Group requirements. The EIA included cumulative impact assessments of Rio Bravo II, III and IV with respect to air emissions, noise, water intake and socioeconomic aspects. It also included results of the public consultation meeting held on July 18, 2002, the Environmental Action Plan, and set out EDFI''s intentions to support a community development program over the operational life of the facilities.
Additional EIAs have been prepared and disclosed by relevant parties for the open access gas pipeline which will be developed to supply gas at least to Rio Bravo III and IV. A 9.3 mile (15km) gas pipeline is being developed by Tennessee Gas Pipeline Company in the United States which joins a 53 km gas pipeline under development by Gasoducto del Rio S.A. de C.V. in Mexico, (a wholly-owned subsidiary of EDFI). The pipelines will be connected at the International Boundary between Hidalgo Country, State of Texas, the USA, and the municipality of Rio Bravo, State of Tamaulipas, Mexico. The Environmental Assessment for the US portion was prepared by US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and its availability was announced on July 26, 2002 (www.ferc.fed.us). The MIA for the Mexican portion was prepared by HP Consultores Ambientales, S.A. DE C.V.; its availability was announced by SEMARNAT in December 2001 and authorization was issued in April 2002.
Key issues analyzed in the EIA by Dames & Moore de Mexico include the following:
Air emissions: NOx emissions will be reduced by using Low-NOx combustors to achieve 110 ppm (25 Celsius, 5% excess O2, 1 atm), which is equivalent to 40ppm (0 Celsius, 15% excess O2, 1 atm), in full compliance with not only Mexican standards but also the World Bank Group NOx emission guideline (61ppm, at 0 Celsius, 15% excess O2, 1 atm). Cumulative air quality impact assessment in the EIA indicates that the air quality levels, when all the three plants (Rio Bravo II, III and IV) are operating, will be in compliance with the Mexican air quality standards and the World Bank Group air quality guidelines. The assessment also concludes that the air quality impacts at the US-Mexico border are minimal. The existing Rio Bravo II power plant has three ambient air quality monitoring stations. The Rio Bravo III and IV will add three additional ambient air quality monitoring stations. Air emissions (NOx, CO, O2) will be monitored by continuous emissions monitoring systems.
Water extraction: Air-cooled condensers will be used to minimize water requirements. Air-cooled condensers require more capital expenditure but significantly reduce the plant''s water needs when compared to conventional wet cooling tower systems. Water will be extracted from a deep well on each site, with a depth between 90 and 250m. This water is brackish and unusable for domestic or irrigation purposes. Water abstraction from deep wells will not affect agricultural or domestic sources; irrigation and domestic water is obtained from rain-fed aquifers which do not interact with the deeper sources used by the power plants. The estimated supply of available groundwater is 6,900,000 m3/year, this is well above the maximum total consumption requirements for the three plants, some 1,300,000 m3/year.
Zero discharge design: Each power plant will have an evaporation lagoon to achieve a zero process wastewater discharge. Evaporation lagoons for Rio Bravo III and IV projects will require an area 20 ha in total to be located about 500 m to the northwest of the Rio Bravo IIII site.
Noise: Noise mitigation measures for the Rio Bravo III and IV plants include enclosures for the combustion and steam turbine generators as well as in-stack silencers for the heat recovery steam generators. The cumulative noise impact by Rio Bravo II, III and IV is estimated in the EIA as 60.3 dBA at the plant boundary. This is in compliance with Mexican noise standards of 68 dBA daytime and 65 dBA nighttime.
Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions assessment: The Rio Bravo II, III and IV power plants will use one of the most energy-efficient combined cycle technologies available (501F by Siemens Westinghouse) with a thermal generating efficiency of 50% (HHV) and 55% (LHV). Assuming annual capacity factor of 70%, the three plants are expected to emit about 1.1 million t-CO2 per year each. The average CO2 emission per unit of electricity generated by the three plants is estimated to be 360 g-CO2 per kWh, which is 35% lower than the Mexican national average of 550 g-CO2 per kWh (1998).
Impacts on the Mexico-US Border Region: The EIA concludes that the area of influence by the complex of Rio Bravo II, III and IV is limited to the Mexican side of the border region, and its maximum air quality impacts are mitigated to be in full compliance with Mexican environmental standards and World Bank Group environmental guidelines. It also concludes that reduced water intake by use of air-cooled condensers will not impact international water resources.
Fuel Supply: The EIA describes the summary of the associated EIAs prepared for the gas pipeline which will be developed to transport gas from Texas, the US, to the State of Tamaulipas, Mexico. No major environmental or social issues are reported in the EIA.
Transmission line: The MIAs prepared by CFE for each power plant state that new transmission lines will not be constructed since the transmission line constructed for the existing Rio Bravo II considered future expansion of the Rio Bravo III and IV plants.
Environmental Action Plan (EAP): The EAP in the EIA describes that Rio Bravo III and IV will develop Environmental Management System based on ISO14001 standard, and includes various mitigation measures and monitoring programs to be implemented. Environmental Management Manual was developed for Rio Bravo III in May 2002 and the same will be developed for Rio Bravo IV soon. Each power plant will have Environmental Manager who will coordinate environmental management. In addition, the Environmental Manager of COMEGO, a service company in charge of administrating EDFI''s power projects in Mexico, will manage each plant''s compliance with Environmental Management Manual. Implementation cost for the EAP is estimated to be (i) in the range of $404,000 to $623,000 per plant during the construction phase; (ii) between $7,932,000 and $8,028,000 per plant for punctual activities for environmental mitigation measures (e.g. low-NOx type combustors, evaporation lagoon, fire-detection system, environmental management system, etc.), most of which to be conducted prior to the initiation of operations; and (iii) between $40,000 to $64,000 per plant per year for annual monitoring, maintenance and implementation activities during the operational phase.
Land acquisition: Rio Bravo III and IV are to be located on 11.2 ha and 11.9 ha parcels of land, respectively. The evaporation lagoons for both plants require a total area of 20 ha at a location some 500 m to the northwest of the Rio Bravo III site. Land for the Rio Bravo III and IV projects was acquired by CFE and is being transferred to EDFI. Land for the evaporation lagoons is being acquired directly by EDFI. All land was purchased through real estate transactions at market value on a willing seller-willing buyer basis. No physical relocation or economic displacement of people took place as a result of these transactions.
Public consultation: A public consultation meeting was held on July 18, 2002 at the municipality of Valle Hermoso organized by EDFI and Dames & Moore de Mexico. About 90 people, including local residents, representatives of interested organizations, and municipal officials, attended the meeting. Questions raised include the site selection, local benefits, community development, groundwater use and impacts on agricultural sector, safety of the plant and the gas pipeline, etc. No oppositions were expressed to Rio Bravo III and IV; EDFI committed to address the concerns raised and to continue consultation with the local residents.
Community development: EDFI has established good relations and communications with the community through the Rio Bravo II project. EDFI is currently working with the municipality to support a library and computer training center during the construction phase; the company has made its intention clear to develop a long-term, life of project community development program in consultation with stakeholders and representatives of the community. EDFI has agreed to consult with IFC in advance of finalizing plans for community projects and will keep IFC informed of expenditures and impacts of community development activities over the life of the loan.
Disclosure of EIAs for the project: CFE prepared an Environmental Impact Assessment (Manifestacion de Impacto Ambiental: MIA) for Rio Bravo III in June 2001, and for Rio Bravo IV in November 2001, based on CFE''s general project specifications. SEMARNAT, the Mexican environmental regulatory agency, disclosed the Executive Summary of the MIAs through their website (www.semarnat.gob.mx) on August 10, 2001 for Rio Bravo III and on December 14, 2001 for Rio Bravo IV. These two MIAs were reviewed by SEMARNAT. CFE received Environmental Impact authorizations for Rio Bravo III on October 31, 2001 and for Rio Bravo IV on May 9, 2002. CFE has transferred these authorizations to EDFI. EDFI retained URS-Dames and Moore de Mexico to prepare an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report to update the MIAs based on EDFI''s specific proposed design specifications and to carry out public consultation activities in accordance with the World Bank Group requirements. The EIA included cumulative impact assessments of Rio Bravo II, III and IV with respect to air emissions, noise, water intake and socioeconomic aspects. It also included results of the public consultation meeting held on July 18, 2002, the Environmental Action Plan, and set out EDFI''s intentions to support a community development program over the operational life of the facilities.
Additional EIAs have been prepared and disclosed by relevant parties for the open access gas pipeline which will be developed to supply gas at least to Rio Bravo III and IV. A 9.3 mile (15km) gas pipeline is being developed by Tennessee Gas Pipeline Company in the United States which joins a 53 km gas pipeline under development by Gasoducto del Rio S.A. de C.V. in Mexico, (a wholly-owned subsidiary of EDFI). The pipelines will be connected at the International Boundary between Hidalgo Country, State of Texas, the USA, and the municipality of Rio Bravo, State of Tamaulipas, Mexico. The Environmental Assessment for the US portion was prepared by US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and its availability was announced on July 26, 2002 (www.ferc.fed.us). The MIA for the Mexican portion was prepared by HP Consultores Ambientales, S.A. DE C.V.; its availability was announced by SEMARNAT in December 2001 and authorization was issued in April 2002.
Key issues analyzed in the EIA by Dames & Moore de Mexico include the following:
Air emissions: NOx emissions will be reduced by using Low-NOx combustors to achieve 110 ppm (25 Celsius, 5% excess O2, 1 atm), which is equivalent to 40ppm (0 Celsius, 15% excess O2, 1 atm), in full compliance with not only Mexican standards but also the World Bank Group NOx emission guideline (61ppm, at 0 Celsius, 15% excess O2, 1 atm). Cumulative air quality impact assessment in the EIA indicates that the air quality levels, when all the three plants (Rio Bravo II, III and IV) are operating, will be in compliance with the Mexican air quality standards and the World Bank Group air quality guidelines. The assessment also concludes that the air quality impacts at the US-Mexico border are minimal. The existing Rio Bravo II power plant has three ambient air quality monitoring stations. The Rio Bravo III and IV will add three additional ambient air quality monitoring stations. Air emissions (NOx, CO, O2) will be monitored by continuous emissions monitoring systems.
Water extraction: Air-cooled condensers will be used to minimize water requirements. Air-cooled condensers require more capital expenditure but significantly reduce the plant''s water needs when compared to conventional wet cooling tower systems. Water will be extracted from a deep well on each site, with a depth between 90 and 250m. This water is brackish and unusable for domestic or irrigation purposes. Water abstraction from deep wells will not affect agricultural or domestic sources; irrigation and domestic water is obtained from rain-fed aquifers which do not interact with the deeper sources used by the power plants. The estimated supply of available groundwater is 6,900,000 m3/year, this is well above the maximum total consumption requirements for the three plants, some 1,300,000 m3/year.
Zero discharge design: Each power plant will have an evaporation lagoon to achieve a zero process wastewater discharge. Evaporation lagoons for Rio Bravo III and IV projects will require an area 20 ha in total to be located about 500 m to the northwest of the Rio Bravo IIII site.
Noise: Noise mitigation measures for the Rio Bravo III and IV plants include enclosures for the combustion and steam turbine generators as well as in-stack silencers for the heat recovery steam generators. The cumulative noise impact by Rio Bravo II, III and IV is estimated in the EIA as 60.3 dBA at the plant boundary. This is in compliance with Mexican noise standards of 68 dBA daytime and 65 dBA nighttime.
Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions assessment: The Rio Bravo II, III and IV power plants will use one of the most energy-efficient combined cycle technologies available (501F by Siemens Westinghouse) with a thermal generating efficiency of 50% (HHV) and 55% (LHV). Assuming annual capacity factor of 70%, the three plants are expected to emit about 1.1 million t-CO2 per year each. The average CO2 emission per unit of electricity generated by the three plants is estimated to be 360 g-CO2 per kWh, which is 35% lower than the Mexican national average of 550 g-CO2 per kWh (1998).
Impacts on the Mexico-US Border Region: The EIA concludes that the area of influence by the complex of Rio Bravo II, III and IV is limited to the Mexican side of the border region, and its maximum air quality impacts are mitigated to be in full compliance with Mexican environmental standards and World Bank Group environmental guidelines. It also concludes that reduced water intake by use of air-cooled condensers will not impact international water resources.
Fuel Supply: The EIA describes the summary of the associated EIAs prepared for the gas pipeline which will be developed to transport gas from Texas, the US, to the State of Tamaulipas, Mexico. No major environmental or social issues are reported in the EIA.
Transmission line: The MIAs prepared by CFE for each power plant state that new transmission lines will not be constructed since the transmission line constructed for the existing Rio Bravo II considered future expansion of the Rio Bravo III and IV plants.
Environmental Action Plan (EAP): The EAP in the EIA describes that Rio Bravo III and IV will develop Environmental Management System based on ISO14001 standard, and includes various mitigation measures and monitoring programs to be implemented. Environmental Management Manual was developed for Rio Bravo III in May 2002 and the same will be developed for Rio Bravo IV soon. Each power plant will have Environmental Manager who will coordinate environmental management. In addition, the Environmental Manager of COMEGO, a service company in charge of administrating EDFI''s power projects in Mexico, will manage each plant''s compliance with Environmental Management Manual. Implementation cost for the EAP is estimated to be (i) in the range of $404,000 to $623,000 per plant during the construction phase; (ii) between $7,932,000 and $8,028,000 per plant for punctual activities for environmental mitigation measures (e.g. low-NOx type combustors, evaporation lagoon, fire-detection system, environmental management system, etc.), most of which to be conducted prior to the initiation of operations; and (iii) between $40,000 to $64,000 per plant per year for annual monitoring, maintenance and implementation activities during the operational phase.
Land acquisition: Rio Bravo III and IV are to be located on 11.2 ha and 11.9 ha parcels of land, respectively. The evaporation lagoons for both plants require a total area of 20 ha at a location some 500 m to the northwest of the Rio Bravo III site. Land for the Rio Bravo III and IV projects was acquired by CFE and is being transferred to EDFI. Land for the evaporation lagoons is being acquired directly by EDFI. All land was purchased through real estate transactions at market value on a willing seller-willing buyer basis. No physical relocation or economic displacement of people took place as a result of these transactions.
Public consultation: A public consultation meeting was held on July 18, 2002 at the municipality of Valle Hermoso organized by EDFI and Dames & Moore de Mexico. About 90 people, including local residents, representatives of interested organizations, and municipal officials, attended the meeting. Questions raised include the site selection, local benefits, community development, groundwater use and impacts on agricultural sector, safety of the plant and the gas pipeline, etc. No oppositions were expressed to Rio Bravo III and IV; EDFI committed to address the concerns raised and to continue consultation with the local residents.
Community development: EDFI has established good relations and communications with the community through the Rio Bravo II project. EDFI is currently working with the municipality to support a library and computer training center during the construction phase; the company has made its intention clear to develop a long-term, life of project community development program in consultation with stakeholders and representatives of the community. EDFI has agreed to consult with IFC in advance of finalizing plans for community projects and will keep IFC informed of expenditures and impacts of community development activities over the life of the loan.
