LED lights: The Hero, the Pope and Enel’s light
Enel’s LEDs have modernised the main park of Bogotá named after the South American hero Simón Bolívar: the city thus gave Pope Francis a worthy welcome as the first Latin American pontiff, but the benefits for its citizens will continue

It is difficult for an inhabitant of Latin America to remain indifferent when the name Simón Bolívar is mentioned. And this is particularly true in the countries that owe their independence to the Libertador, such as Colombia. In its capital Bogotá, the main park is dedicated to the national hero, and is just one of the countless tributes that have been paid to him in South America and beyond.
Therefore the Colombians, but also all Latin Americans, will be delighted to learn that thanks to the Enel Group’s smart solutions, Parque Simón Bolívar has now acquired a new splendour and has extended its open hours to the public. The LED technology has finally given the park modern and pleasant lighting which makes it possible for the citizens to enjoy the greenery with open hours that have been extended to 23.00.
A Great Central Park
The Simón Bolívar Park in the centre of Bogotá is the city’s most important green space: it has an area of about 400 hectares, or 4 square kilometres. For the sake of comparison, it is bigger than New York’s Central Park with an area of 340 hectares. It has been estimated that the park could hold 550,000 people at the same time (slightly less than the entire population of a city like Genoa).
It is considered the city's lung thanks to its rich vegetation, but is also the city’s venue for cultural, recreational and sporting events. In fact, among other initiatives it hosts rock concerts and those of other musical genres, summer festivals and football club celebrations. What has been missing up to now was a modern and efficient public lighting system.
A Worthy Welcome for Pope Francis
The operations were managed by Codensa, the Enel Group company operating in Colombia with 3.3 million customers, a penetration of over 20% of the national market and exclusive management of the entire capital area.
The occasion for the start of the modernisation works was Pope Francis’s visit to Parque Simón Bolívar last September (Bergoglio is the third pontiff to visit the park after Paul VI in 1968 and John Paul II in 1986): the immediate goal - fully achieved - was to ensure the Pope the hospitality he deserved and provide adequate accommodation for the hundreds of thousands of people who came to the park to see and listen to him. It is therefore also thanks to us if the South American hero welcomed the first Latin American Pope in history in the best possible way. And of course, the efficiency measures will remain at the service of the citizens for much longer to come.
We not only want to guarantee the reliable supply of electricity in the various points Pope Francis will pass by or stop at, but also offer all the visitors the tranquillity of being able to share His Holiness’s visit thanks to adequate lighting and acoustics
Resources
Read all the stories of Enel X and discover how the world can become ever more smart and sustainable
Turnkey electric mobility at home and on the road
A complete and comprehensive offering for electric mobility, from the "socket" to be installed in your garage at home, through the Pole and Fast Stations along the road, to the Fast Charge infrastructures
Enel X and Roncadin, when energy efficiency becomes a textbook success story
The Friuli company, which is the world’s leading maker of frozen pizzas, turned to Enel X’s expertise to make the chiller units at its manufacturing site outside Pordenone more efficient
Natural gas-powered vehicles: a network of filling stations is launched
Endesa has opened a filling station for more efficient, sustainable natural gas-powered vehicles in Valdemoro, just outside Madrid