The State Government of Minas Gerais in Brazil has provided environmental approval to what it says is the largest solar PV energy project in the country, with a capacity of 1,357 MW. It is planned to come up in Jaiba region for an investment of BRL 6 billion ($1.18 billion).

The official state government news portal Agencia Minas shared the large scale solar project is to be built by Aurora Energia with construction scheduled to begin from H2/2020 after the State Secretariat for the Environment and Sustainable Development (SEMAD) cleared the project.

Aurora Energia’s website says the project will have 1,360 MW capacity and divided between 34 blocks of 40 MW each. On completion it will become the ‘largest’ solar PV project in Latin America with a total capital expenditure of BRL 5 billion ($978 million). It will generate an approximate of 90 billion kWh clean power annually through 2.3 million PV modules of 370 W output each.

On April 24, 2020, Brazilian solar association ABSOLAR said the cumulative installed solar power capacity of Brazil had reached 5,576 MW. Agencia Minas says Minas Gerais is the fourth largest utility scale solar power generator in the country currently with 755 MW installed and construction, right behind Piaui, Ceara and Bahia. The state government hopes to take the lead in this space with the 1,357 MW solar power plant.

With the COVID-19 pandemic slowing down the Brazilian PV sector, GlobalData sees the country installing 700 MW in 2020 as against the previous expectation of 1.3 GW (see Brazil Likely To Add 700 MW Solar In 2020).