Bahía Málaga energy community (solar-diesel hybrid microgrid, La Plata)
Energy community in the La Plata archipelago, Uramba Bahía Málaga (Valle del Cauca). FENOGE, with the Ministry of Mines and Energy, installed a solar-diesel hybrid microgrid plus 40 individual solar systems to bring energy from 4 up to 24 hours a day to Afro-descendant settlements (about 291 families).
illustrative atlas image · Simon Brandintel / Pexels01 The context
It began operating in May 2025. After the inauguration, the community reported that the system does not work as promised: when the diesel plant fails, the batteries last about two hours, far from the announced 70% solar / 30% diesel; the works were inaugurated without closing out the contract or verifying all the equipment.
02 How it works
03 What it stands on
The evidence 2 ›
04 Lessons learned
Inaugurating without formally accepting the works leaves the community with a system that promises 24 hours but delivers few: the battery sizing and the diesel backup fail, and the 70/30 promise is not met. Sustainability depends as much on technical verification and maintenance as on the political inauguration.