The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) approved Friday loans of $23.2 million and $44.1 million to the Marcona and Tres Hermanas wind farm projects in the Nazca province, Peru's southern region of Ica.
The loans will provide long-term financing for two of the first commercial-scale wind power projects in Peru, leading to the displacement of an estimated 440,000 tons of CO2 emissions annually.
Together, the energy generated by the two farms is expected to produce a supply equivalent to meet the needs of an estimated 500,000 Peruvian consumers.
Construction on the Marcona farm and associated facilities was completed in March of this year. Work on the Tres Hermanas site began in July and is expected to be completed in September 2015.
“The IDB’s financing of these two projects will send a strong signal to potential investors in Peru’s wind market,” said Jean-Marc Aboussouan, chief of the Infrastructure Division in the Bank’s Structured and Corporate Finance Department.
He continued, “Wind offers a complement to thermal and hydroelectric sources, which today account for 97 percent of the country’s energy matrix, and will serve as a seasonal complement to hydro in particular.”
IDB support for the two farms is also expected to include subordinated debt funding from the Canadian Climate Fund for the Private Sector (“C2F”), which will play a critical role in optiminzing the capital structure of the project.
The IDB is also discussing the design of training and recruitment initiatives for women, including internship programs in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, with the project sponsor Cobra Instalaciones y Servicios S.A.