Developer Sky Solar has announced that the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has approved US$55.7 million loan to finance the construction, operation and maintenance of six PV plants and their connected facilities in Uruguay. The China Co-Financing Fund and the Canadian Climate Fund for the Private Sector, both led by IDB, will also offer additional loans of US$19.3 million and US$10 million, respectively.
The installations, sponsored by Sky Solar and local company Lafemir S.A., will be located in the departments of Paysandú, Salto and Río Negro in western Uruguay. With a total installed capacity of 82MW, the plants will supply an average of 125.3 GWh of electricity per year to the national grid.
Jean-Marc Aboussouan, infrastructure division chief at the Structured and Corporate Financing Department – the IDB unit responsible for financing large-scale private sector projects, said: “Through this project, the IDB continues supporting Uruguay in furthering its non-traditional renewable energy capacity, while also promoting use of locally manufactured equipment, professional capacitation and the implementation of a climate change educational initiative.”
Weili Su, chairman and chief executive officer of Sky Solar, added: “We are very pleased to have secured financing from the IDB and its affiliated funds for this major project in Uruguay as we continue to expand our operations and pipeline in the Latin America region. Additionally, we continue to make progress on the 9.5MW (8MW AC) already under construction in Uruguay and also remain on track to break ground on one of the largest solar projects in Chile during the third quarter of 2015.
“Meanwhile, we continue to see significant growth potential in the region, and expect more opportunities beyond our 639MW pipeline in Latin America. Our focus remains on projects with high returns while securing low cost of capital as we continue to explore new opportunities and expand our pipeline in the region.”
