Washington D.C., October 26, 2007 —
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group has signed an agreement to support the construction of Chile’s La Confluencia hydropower project to help meet the country’s increasing energy needs. This project will provide clean, renewable power and help lower energy prices.
La Confluencia is a 158 megawatt run-of-river hydroelectric power plant to be built in the Tinguiririca valley, about 150 km south of Santiago. It is upstream of the IFC-financed La Higuera hydropower plant project, which is under construction by the same sponsors. As the project’s water inflows are determined primarily by melting snow, La Confluencia is expected to dispatch at full load during the dry season when water levels in the system are below average.
The project is being developed by a 50/50 consortium comprising Australia’s Pacific Hydro Pty Ltd (Pacific Hydro) and Statkraft Norfund Power Invest AS (SNPI) of Norway. IFC’s $208 million financing package will consist of an $83 million loan for IFC’s own account and a $125 million loan for the account of participating banks,
including DnB NOR Bank, HSH Nordbank, Nordea Bank, Banco Santander, and SEB.
Rashad Kaldany, IFC Director for Infrastructure, said, “Using indigenous renewable resources, La Confluencia will help Chile meet a growing demand for power and improve the country's energy security. The project will also help reduce carbon emissions that are associated with power generation. We are happy to continue building our partnership with Pacific Hydro and Statkraft Norfund Power Invest.”
Atul Mehta, IFC Director for Latin America and the Caribbean, noted, “This project supports the government of Chile's goal of increasing energy supply and, more specifically, renewable energy. This is a high development impact project in a key sector of the country’s economy, and IFC is very pleased to be supporting it.”
About IFC
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, fosters sustainable economic growth in developing countries by financing private sector investment, mobilizing private capital in local and international financial markets, and providing advisory and risk mitigation services to businesses and governments. IFC’s vision is that poor people have the opportunity to escape poverty and improve their lives. In FY07, IFC committed $8.2 billion and mobilized an additional $3.9 billion through loan participations and structured finance for 299 investments in 69 developing countries. IFC also provided advisory services in 97 countries. For more information, visit
www.ifc.org
.
About the Sponsors
Pacific Hydro is an Australian renewable energy company that was founded in 1992. Since that time, Pacific Hydro has developed an extensive range of hydro and wind projects in Australia and around the world. Pacific Hydro has a policy of not building new dams, ensuring all hydro projects have made use of either existing irrigation dams or run-of-water flows.
SNPI was established in 2002 as a joint venture between Statkraft SF and the Norwegian Investment Fund for Developing Countries. Its objective is to develop, own, and operate environmentally friendly hydropower assets that contribute to economic growth and sustainable development in emerging markets.
