| El Salvador: Electricity sector | ||
|---|---|---|
| ||
| Data | ||
| Electricity coverage(2006) | 83.4% (total), 72% (rural), 97% (urban); (LAC total average in 2007: 92%) | |
| Installed capacity(2006) | 1,312 MW | |
| Share of fossil energy | 40% | |
| Share of renewable energy | 60% (hydroelectric & geothermal) | |
| GHG emissions from electricity generation (2003) | 1.57 MtCO2 | |
| Average electricity use (2006) | 702 kWh per capita | |
| Distribution losses (2006) | 12.4% | |
| Transmission losses (2006) | 1.7% | |
| Residential consumption (% of total) | 33% | |
| Industrial consumption (% of total) | n/a | |
| Commercial consumption (% of total) | n/a | |
| Average residential tariff (US$/kWh, 2006) | 0.139; (LAC average in 2005: 0.115) | |
| Average industrial tariff (US$/kWh, 2006) | 0.103; (LAC average in 2005: 0.107) | |
| Average commercial tariff (US$/kWh, 2006) | n/a | |
| Annual investment in electricity | n/a | |
| Institutions | ||
| Sector unbundling | Yes | |
| Share of private sector generation | 65% | |
| Competitive supply to large users | Yes | |
| Competitive supply to residential users | No | |
| Number of service providers | 11 (generation), 1 (transmission), 5 (distribution) | |
| National electricity regulator | Yes (SIGET) | |
| Responsibility for policy setting | Ministry of Economy | |
| Responsibility for renewable energy | Ministry of Economy | |
| Responsibility for the environment | Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (MARNA) | |
| Electricity Sector Law | Yes (1996) | |
| Renewable Energy Law | Yes (2007) | |
| CDM transactions related to the electricity sector | 3 registered CDM project; 385,533 t CO2e annual emissions reductions | |
El Salvador's energy sector is largerly focused on renewables. El Salvador is the largest producer of geothermal energy in Central America. Except for hydroelectric generation, which is almost totally owned and operated by the public company CEL (Comisión Hidroeléctrica del Río Lempa), the rest of the generation capacity is in private hands. With demand expected to grow at a rate of 5% in the coming years, the Government's 2007 National Energy Strategy identified several hydroelectric and geothermal projects as the best option to meet demand in the future and to diversify the country's energy mix.
This would also reduce the dependence on traditional thermal sources and, with that, the vulnerability to high oil prices that the country started to face in 2005. El Salvador is also one of the countries included in the SIEPAC project, which will integrate the electricity network of the country with the rest of the Central American region.
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