CAF Approves $462 Million for Paraguay’s Energy and Road Infrastructure
The program to improve and modernize Paraguay’s power grid and electric service management, together with the project to build access to the second international bridge over the Paraná River, are set to improve the quality of life of residents and boost the country’s productivity and tourism.
The Board of Directors of CAF—development bank of Latin America—has approved a $250 million loan to the National Electricity Administration (ANDE) for the deployment of the program to improve and modernize Paraguay’s power grid and electric service management.
The program includes revamping the power distribution system in urban areas across 14 departments, which are expected to reduce the chance of outages in the electrical system, directly impacting the quality of life of some 2.2 million people. The project also aims to acquire a series of mobile substations in order to reduce downtime caused by outages in transmission substations.
Funds will also go to improving management of the national power distribution system through the development, implementation and use of software and hardware systems, as well as an assortment of technological solutions, in order to automate and optimize the electric system’s technical, operational and administrative processes, thereby increasing reliability by 95 percent and benefiting its 6.8 million users nationwide.
“This funding seeks to improve the quality of electric service, giving distribution and transmission systems greater reliability, capacity, safety and sustainability,” CAF executive president Luis Carranza said. “The goal is to reduce system outages and downtime, as well as improve management through the development, implementation and use of computer systems that will efficiently manage assets and support timely planning, projects, works, operation and maintenance.”
During the 167th Board of Directors meeting, held in Panama City, CAF approved a USD 212 million operation for Paraguay’s project to build road access to the Second International Bridge on the Paraná River, which complements the construction of the new international bridge linking the towns of Presidente Franco (Paraguay) and Foz do Iguaçu (Brazil), in the vicinity of Ciudad de Este. The project aims to help improve connectivity between Brazil and Paraguay, integrating production and logistics activities, in order to consolidate the region’s economic growth by facilitating trade flow and boosting tourism between the two countries.
The plan consists of bringing the new international bridge into service by completing the necessary works to connect it to the National Road Network (National Route No. 2). To this end, a 32-km dual-carriageway road will be built, as well as a new primary control center. The plan also includes decongesting Paraguay's main border crossing at Ciudad del Este (triple border), to boost the country’s international trade.
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