A Lightsource BP, a multinational that operates in the development and management of solar energy projects, concluded the financing of the Milagres Solar project in Brazil, located in Abaiara, in the interior of Ceará.
Work on the transmission system began in December 2021 and work on the five solar plants, which make up the complex, began in September this year, with investment of R$ 800 million.
During the construction of the park, with commercial operations scheduled for the beginning of 2024, 800 direct jobs will be created. According to the company, the priority is to hire local labor.
In addition, the company will make socio-environmental investments in local communities, with programs aimed at generating income, family farming and education.
Sell on ACL and PPAs
A most of the complex's energy will be sold in the ACL (Free Contracting Environment) through PPAs (long-term energy purchase and sale contracts) signed with companies with high financial strength. The remainder of the available electricity will be sold in the coming years.
“These contracts reinforce the importance of Brazil in our global strategy. The objective is to optimize energy sales from our projects, creating good businesses and partnerships that add value to customers and investors”, said Ricardo Barros, Country Manager Brazil at Lightsource BP.
“The financial closing of Milagres is a milestone for our company, not only because it was the first in the country, but also because it represents the paving of the path that we will use to achieve our growth ambitions in Brazil”, highlighted Talvani Nolasco, vice president of Lightsource BP Business Development in Brazil.
EPC and supply contracts
According to the multinational, the EPC contractor (Engineering, Construction and Supply) of the project is the Motrice, specialized in solutions for the construction of renewable energy generation, transmission and distribution systems.
Regarding supply contracts, they were signed with globally recognized level 1 manufacturers, including: photovoltaic modules from Canadian Solar, inverters and main transformer Huawei and NX Horizon™ smart solar trackers from Nextracker.
Financing
O Bank of Brazil, through the FDNE (Northeast Development Fund), administered by Sudene (Northeast Development Superintendency), will finance R$ 423 million of the park; and the remainder of the resources needed to implement the projects will be invested directly by Lightsource BP.
Common pipeline of approximately 4.5 GWp of projects under development, divided between the Southeast, Central-West and Northeast regions of Brazil, Lightsource BP reported that it expects to meet the growing demand for clean energy contracts, through corporate PPAs and energy self-production agreements.