Akuo, a global renewable energy power producer and developer, and Atlantica Sustainable Infrastructure announce that they have closed the financing and started the construction of a portfolio, composed of nine photovoltaic power plants with a total capacity of 80 MWp.
Located in the Regions of Maule (VII), Ñuble (XVI), Araucanía (IX) and Biobío (VIII), the projects are all situated in the south of Santiago de Chile. Once commissioned, the portfolio will deliver enough electricity to power close to 60,000 households. They will avoid the emission of over 60,000 tons of CO2 each year of operation and provide a sustainable and local source of clean electricity. These nine solar farms will help the country to diversify its electricity mix which currently depends heavily on fossil fuels.
Chile has an ambitious goal of converting 70% of its total energy consumption to renewables by 2030, with strong citizen support: 91% of Chileans believe that climate change should be treated as a government priority, according to the Yale Program for Climate Change Communication.
The portfolio benefits from the country’s PMGD (Pequeños Medios de Generación Distribuida) regime. Akuo and Atlantica Sustainable Infrastructure are the equity sponsors whereby the debt financing is provided by DNB. The Engineering, Procurement and Construction activities for the nine solar plants will be performed by Italian engineering player MAIRE Group, that also acted as co-developer of the initiatives, through its Integrated E&C Solutions business unit.
Martin Bocage, Akuo Country Manager for Chile, Argentina and Uruguay says: “Akuo is a committed stakeholder to Chile’s energy transition and we stick to our words. Construction is on-going and we will soon inject electricity for the benefit of the citizens. Chile’s renewable energy strategy encourages us to continue growing and investing in this country.”
Antonio Merino, VP South America at Atlantica mentions: “This investment increases Atlantica’s presence in Chile as we continue executing on our growth plan in renewables. The portfolio is fully aligned with our long-term strategy and GHG emissions reduction targets. Chile is one our core geographies in South America and we plan to continue devoting time and efforts to close new investments and contribute to the transition of the country towards a clean energy mix.”
Esteban Uauy, Senior VP for project finance in Latam, states: “DNB is very pleased with this financing as it continues to underpin the importance of distributed generation in Chile, while at the same time supports the growth and development of two clients deeply committed to renewables”.
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