Financial close of US$150 million achieved for 359 MW solar project in Brazil

Atlas Renewable Energy has obtained a US$150 million loan from IDB Invest, a member of IDB Group, and from DNB Bank ASA to finance the construction of its Lar do Sol – Casablanca project, a 359 MWp solar project to be developed in Brazil that will provide clean energy to Anglo American’s operations in Minas Gerais.

The loan was secured from IDB Invest, including the Clean Technology Fund and the Canadian Climate Fund for the Private Sector in the Americas – Phase II, both administered by IDB Invest, together with a participation from DNB Bank ASA.

The plant will generate 805 GWh per year and the Power Purchase Agreement is, to date, the largest contract with a solar project for the supply of clean energy to a private offtaker in Brazil and indexed to the United States dollar. Lar do Sol – Casablanca’s generation will be the equivalent of supplying energy to 390,000 houses per year according to the average consumption of a Brazilian family and will avoid approximately 50,000 tons of CO₂emissions per year, which could be compared to removing 19,867 vehicles from the streets of São Paulo in the same period.

100% of the photovoltaic solar modules that will be installed in Lar do Sol- Casablanca will use bifacial technology, increasing project performance with the aim of making electricity production more efficient through solar energy.