SES Tlmače signed greatest power engineering project in Cuba of last 20 years

On 5.2.2016 during visit of Ricardo Cabrisas Ruiz, vice president of Cuba, to Robert Fico, prime minister of the Slovak Republic, SES a.s. Tlmače signed a contract with ENERGOIMPORT in the amount of almost 90 million Euro for modernization of unit at Mariel Thermal Power Plant. The contract was signed by the general managers of the companies – Mr. Martin Paštika for SES Tlmače and Mr. Rafael Ernesto Lage for ENERGOIMPORT. The project is expected to be financed by a supplier credit of VÚB Bank with export credit insurance of EXIMBANKA SR. The project duration is planned from 2016 – 2019, while engineering work and first deliveries from SES to Cuba are anticipated at the end of this year.   

SES Tlmače will provide modernization of power plant unit of 100 MW consisting of a boiler, a turbine, a generator, electric equipment and accessories. Modernization of the unit will require designing, construction of civil part, delivery of equipment, assembly, its commissioning and putting it into commercial operation. It is going to be the greatest investment project in construction of power engineering sources in Cuba of the last 20 years.

“The unit is a part of CTE Máximo Gómez Power Plant situated within a new special investment zone of Mariel near Havana where a large port has been built recently. The Mariel zone has priority for the Cuban party in future, too,“ says Martin Paštika, general manager and chairman of the board of directors SES a.s. Tlmače.

The power plant was built with eight 100 MW units thereof three are serviceable at present.  Analyses of development prepared by the Ministry of economy specified a necessity to integrate the unit into the national power system.  “So we see further possibilities as the other units of the power plant will also require investment,” says Martin Paštika and adds more: “In the last 15 years our deliveries performed in Cuba amounted to 100 mil. EUR and getting this job means keeping a good position in this country and continuing our work just after finishing the MOA project in the south Cuba...“

For SES Tlmače, this project means linking-up to successful modernization of Santa Cruz Power Plant of 100 MW output (about 40 km from Havana towards Varadero) where the deliveries finished in 2006.  The Power Plant unit has been in reliable operation from the very beginning and has been a very good reference in Cuba.
“When investments to classical energy sources have stopped in European market, getting Mariel project is definitely good news,” says Martin Paštika, general manager and chairman of the board of directors SES a.s. Tlmače and adds more: “The market position of SES Tlmače in Cuba is unique and we certainly wish to be involved in new energy projects in this country. Cuba belongs among the markets where governmental support and funding the projects is often required. EXIMBANKA ensuring export insurance of supplier credit for the Client provided a key support during the final negotiations of the project “.

SES Tlmače Activities in Cuba 
SES Tlmače has been active on the market of Cuban power engineering almost 40 years. SES can be proud of its successful results, as during the mentioned period they arranged construction of 13 boilers of total output of 4,810 tons steam per hour or 1,265 MW. It is about 40 %-installed output in Cuban power plants. At the time of past Czechoslovakia, it was in cooperation with SKODAEXPORT a SKODA PRAHA. Since 1997, SES has been performing their activities in Cuba through their own agency in Havana.

• Modernization of CTE NUEVITAS Power Plant – Units 5 and 6“ was an important project as it was the first “independent” project of SES in Cuba. The project of the total amount of about 19.6 mil. USD funded a Slovak bank was successfully finished in 2000. For SES it was an excellent reference within Cuban power engineering and was a good starting position for further projects.
• Modernization of CTE Este Habana (Santa Cruz) Power Plant, so-called major modernization. The contract of more than 30 mil. EUR came into effect in 2003 and was connected to “minor” modernization and related to the general modernization of complete 3x100 MW units. In December 2006, the first modernized unit – Unit 2 – was handed over into permanent operation. The project was funded by a Slovak bank.
• CIENFUEGOS – delivery of 2 x 25 t/h packaged boilers. That was the first contract performed with a common Cuban-Venezuelan enterprise PDV CUPET SA, an enterprise outside the power-engineering domain. The contract was performed in 2007.
• Delivery of unit for nickel company UNION del NIQUEL – MOA. It was a contract from 2002 for construction of 25 MWe power engineering unit with 2 x 150 t/h boilers, for more than 25 mil. EUR. Works started in 2004 and the boilers K6 and K7 were handed over to client for utilization in 2007. In 2010 there was made a contract for the 2nd phase of modernization – completion of the machine room, 25 MWe output, amounting to 8 mil. EUR, being completed this year .  The importance of the contract was the fact that it was the first contract with a client outside the power-engineering domain.