FinDev Canada, the country’s bilateral development finance institution, has announced a US$56 million loan to support the development of a 396MW solar PV project in Peru.
The loan will go towards Energía Renovable La Joya S.A. for the Illa project, which the company says will be the largest PV project in Peru upon completion. Energía Renovable La Joya is a special purpose vehicle for the Illa project wholly owned by Spanish energy and agriculture developer Enhol Energía.
Get Premium Subscription
The money forms part of a wider US$289 million loan, led by Santander CIB, and Enhol Energía expects to start operations at the project by the end of this year.
“FinDev Canada’s commitment is a clear vote of confidence in project Illa and in our ability to execute,” said Diego Lovier and Gonzalo Oliver, co-CEOs of Grupo Enhol, of which Enhol Energía is a subsidiary. “It reinforces the facility’s strength and supports the timely delivery of a landmark solar asset for Peru.”
The Peruvian solar sector has seen considerable growth in recent months, including the launch of commercial operations at Zelestra’s 300MW San Martín project, the largest in the country. Other project news includes the start of construction work at Acciona Energía’s 177.9MW project in southern Peru, dubbed San José.
Latin America could be positioned to receive “billions” in clean energy investment, according to trade association SolarPower Europe, which published a report into investment opportunities in Latin American solar last year. Peru was one of five countries profiled by the report, and comes at a time of cautious optimism for new renewable energy investments from Europe’s financiers; at last week’s Solar Finance & Investment Europe summit, attendees expressed optimism about the strong market fundamentals behind solar that underpin many of the investment decisions being made by European investors at present.

source