Wind Energy

Brazil Wind Energy Development May Halt in 15 Days, Abeeolica Says

Wind farm developers in Brazil may be forced to halt construction on some wind power projects within 15 days because the state development bank BNDES is freezing financing for wind turbines purchased from suppliers it claims aren’t meeting local-content requirements.

Without loans from Brazil’s biggest wind farm financier, developers are unable to pay for equipment they’ve already agreed to buy, Elbia Melo, executive president of the Sao Paulo- based wind-energy trade group Associacao Brasileira de Energia Eolica, said, accordind to Bloomberg.

BNDES, formally Banco Nacional de Desenvolvimento Economico e Social, temporarily suspended loans last month for wind turbines from five foreign manufacturers with operations in Brazil that it says aren’t obtaining enough components from domestic suppliers.

“If this goes on for another 15 to 20 days, projects will stop,” Melo said. Suppliers like India’s Suzlon Energy Ltd. (SUEL) “are already losing new clients.”

BNDES suspended financing for equipment from Suzlon, Denmark’s Vestas Wind Systems A/S (VWS), Germany’s Fuhrlaender AG, Clipper Windpower Ltd. of the U.S and Spain’s Acciona SA, Melo said.

Wind power in Brazil

1997: 3 MW
1998: 17 MW
1999: 19 MW
2000: 22 MW
2001: 24 MW
2002: 22 MW
2003: 24 MW
2004: 24 MW
2005: 29 MW
2006: 237 MW
2007: 247 MW
2008: 339 MW
2009: 606 MW
2010: 931 MW
2011: 1,509 MW
2020: 20,000 MW (p)

www.abeeolica.org.br