Paraguay preparing power infrastructure lease call

Paraguay’s state power company Ande plans to launch international bidding to improve dispatch in the northern department of Alto Paraguay.

The 24-month project entails the expansion of the Vallemi 2 substation, and the construction of a 75km, 220kV transmission line from the substation to the future Carmelo Peralta substation.

The work will cost US$30mn and will be offered using operational leasing, which Ande has used in the past.

Under this modality, a contractor receives a periodic fixed payment from the state operator, at the end of which Ande will have the option to pay the project's residual value or extend the contract for a lower payment.

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News of the proposed call followed a meeting between Ande head Félix Sosa and Alto Paraguay governor Arturo Méndez, among other authorities and community leaders.

In recent days and weeks, Ande has published tenders to overhaul the Acaray substation and shore up the grid in the west of the country.

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