Assessment of solar and wind energy potential in La Guajira, Colombia: Current status, and future prospects

Abstract

This article presents a detailed analysis of the energy potential in the department of La Guajira, Colombia. This analysis was obtained from the review and structuring of all the information available in the different private, governmental sources, studies and previous analyzes carried out by other researches. The document includes the energy and regulatory landscape of renewable energies in Colombia due to Law 1715 and the climatic implications. The department of La Guajira is described geographically, socially and culturally and an exhaustive mesh-like analysis of the department's solar and wind potential is carried out, based on statistical database and specialized software. It includes the status of significant wind and solar energy installations and the upcoming projects according to the Mining and Energy Planning Unit of Colombia. In addition, a comparison of the potential obtained with the energy demands of some countries of the Latin American Energy Organization. In addition, the effects of current and future Colombian demand are compared to 2050 and the possible influence of the Guajira as the main supplier of this demand. Finally, a simulation that will allow to dimension the dynamics for the development of projects that take advantage of the different types of energy source.