Cane ethanol is the foundation of
Brazil’s impressive energy
policy, but solar could soon have a strong foothold in the country's energy portfolio. The
Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has launched programs throughout Latin America that could help make solar energy more cost effective. Once such program is in the town of
Tauá, located in the state of
Ceará (known for the city of Fortaleza) in northeastern Brazil. According to the
IDB:
The solar project located in the municipality of Tauá in the state of Ceará will be the first ever large scale power generation project to connect a photovoltaic (PV) system into the national interconnected system in Brazil. In its pilot stage, Tauá will generate 1 MW of direct current, and represent the largest PV project incorporated to a grid in South America.
The initial project will provide energy to about 1500 residences and could quintuple in size if all goes to plan.
Northeastern Brazil and regions like Bahia has long underperformed economically compared to the rest of the country, but now business is booming, thanks to farming, new deepwater ports, and of course, the prospect of offshore oil. Projects like that of the IDB should help this incredible section of the country both grow and help mitigate the resulting environmental impact.
About The Author
Leon Kaye
Leon Kaye is the founder and editor of GreenGoPost.com and its advisory division,
GGP Media.
Contact him to discuss how he can work with your organization or event.
His focus is making the business case for sustainability and corporate social responsibility (CSR).
He writes for San Francisco-based
Triple Pundit,
Inhabitat and now
The Guardian, for which he writes about corporate responsibility, water, and green building. He has also written for AIA's
Architect Magazine.
Leon works out of Fresno and Silicon Valley, California, and when he has free time, he enjoys hiking, gardening, cooking, weightlifting, and planning his next trip to one of the 60 countries he has visited. He has an MBA from USC's Marshall School of Business and is also a proud graduate of the University of Maryland-Baltimore County (UMBC) and Cal State-Fresno.
Cane ethanol is the foundation of Brazil’s impressive energy policy, but solar could soon have a strong foothold in the country's energy portfolio. The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has launched programs throughout Latin America that could help make solar energy more cost effective. Once such program is in the town of Tauá, located in the state of Ceará (known for the city of Fortaleza) in northeastern Brazil. According to the IDB:
