Actis buys solar project powering Chilean metro

Emerging markets investor Actis has acquired a 110MW solar project in Chile that will be used to power Santiago’s underground railway system.

The deal to purchase the El Pelicano solar plant adds to the investors’ portfolio of clean energy assets in Chile, which also includes the investment platform Aela Energia. Solar developer SunPower will provide operations and maintenance, according to a statement. The price of the transaction was not disclosed.

“With a supportive regulatory environment and abundant solar resource, Chile is a market we know extremely well through our investments in the Aela Energia [platform],” Actis director Javier Areitio said. Actis has plans to build Aela Energia into a Chilean clean energy company managing 600MW, according to its website.

Actis has become a leading investor in Latin American clean energy after establishing several platform companies that have purchased and developed clean energy assets. It owns 60 percent of a joint venture along with Mainstream Renewable Power that invests in clean energy assets in Chile. The company currently operates three projects generating a combined 332MW.

Last August, Actis’ Mexico-based renewables company, Zuma Energia, reached financial close on what will be one of Latin America’s largest wind projects – the 424MW Reynosa Wind Farm.

The firm also created two new special-purpose vehicles last year – Echoenergia, which will focus on the development and operation of wind projects in Brazil, and Atlas Renewable, which will invest in solar projects across Latin America.