Honduras in line for 81.7MW of SunEdison solar

Global solar developer, SunEdison, has closed a US$146 million debt facility to build 81.7MW of solar in the Central American country, Honduras.

The deal with the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI) and the OPEC Fund for International Development (OFID), will enable SunEdison to construct three grid-connected solar power plants in Honduras.

The three solar power plants are ‘Pacifico’ 23.3MW, ‘Choluteca I’ 23.3MW and ‘Choluteca II’ 35.1MW. All three are scheduled to come online in 2015.

The projects are part of 600MW of solar power contracts awarded by the government of Honduras. The contracts are for 20 years of power supply to ENEE, Honduras’ state utility.

According to analysis by IHS this September, Honduras is set to lead a 1.5GW surge in Central America PV installations up to 2018.

Solar in Mexico and Central America is poised for growth in 2015 and 2016 after what looks to be a quiet year this year, according to a Bloomberg New Energy Finance report.