17 November 2011: The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has approved a US$150 million loan to expand wind energy generation in Latin America. The loan will support the construction of four wind farms, three in Brazil and one in Uruguay, expected to add 546 megawatts of wind energy capacity to the region by 2014.

The IDB loan to IMPSA’s Brazilian subsidiary Wind Power Energía S.A., is part of an estimated US$1.4 billion investment program expected to reduce carbon emissions by approximately 595,000 to 680,000 tons of carbon dioxide per year. IDB will also provide IMPSA with technical assistance to conduct an energy efficiency audit in its primary hydro and wind turbine manufacturing plant to identify options for reducing energy costs and greenhouse gas emissions at the plant. The three new Brazilian wind power plants will add an additional 481 megawatts of installed capacity in Brazil, while the plant in Uruguay will contribute with at least 13 percent of the country’s strategic goal of reaching 500 megawatts of installed wind capacity over the next five years. [IDB Press Release]