La Zumbona Rural Electrification Project

As a prominent Panamanian power generation company, AES Panama is fully committed to fulfilling its obligations under the law regarding Rural Electrification. Following Law 67 of December 9, 2016, which emphasizes the promotion of equity in the electricity supply in rural areas, AES Panama has undertaken a significant Rural Electrification Project.

Rather than delegating the responsibility to the Rural Electrification Office of Panama (OER) for the planning and logistics of the project, AES Panama has chosen to assume full responsibility. This decision ensures meticulous handling and timely execution of this vital social initiative.

AES Panama's Rural Electrification Project was implemented in the region of La Zumbona, Chepo. The project encompasses a comprehensive investment totaling $915,090.49. This investment includes the design, construction, supply, transportation, delivery, and installation of materials and equipment necessary for the electrical distribution line, walls, electrical connections, internal facilities, and public lighting. The homes that were too far away from each other and thus could not be connected to the transmission line, were given auto-sufficient solar panels instead so that they could also be part of this life-changing project.  These efforts aim to provide the Community of La Zumbona with a reliable and continuous electricity service. Notably, the project involves the extension of a 19.9 KV single-phase line and the establishment of a new 120/240 V secondary line within the community of La Zumbona. The project site is in the township of Torti, within the district of Chepo, province of Panama.

More than 300 families from the La Zumbona community have benefitted from this project, discovering the wonders of refrigeration and air conditioning thanks to the availability of electricity in their homes and businesses. The following rural electrification project from the AES Foundation will take place in Changuinola, nearby our Hydroelectric Complex, to benefit the neighboring community with this invaluable resource.

For his part, Benito Bultrón, president of the board of directors of the La Zumbona community, said that on behalf of the entire community, they thank AES Panama for having fulfilled the dream they had always had of being able to have electricity in every one of their homes. "God bless all those who lead and work in the company for making this dream come true for us that I had longed for more than 20 years.", he said. It is a great joy for the company to see so many families pleased to have electricity in their homes, who are already replacing kerosene lamps with light bulbs.

The engineer Luis Antonio Galán, director of operations of AES in Panama, expressed that for the entire team that has worked on this project for more than a year, it has been a great satisfaction to see the people of the community how happy they are to have energy in their residences. "People who had never had electricity in their homes can now go out and share with neighbors and play dominoes with each other outside their homes because they no longer live in darkness, that is priceless.", he said.