UK's Atome gains multilateral support to study 300 MWp solar project in Paraguay

en.Wedoany.com Reported - UK company Atome has announced the signing of an agreement with a dollar-denominated financing fund of a multilateral development bank, securing financial and technical support to conduct a feasibility study for a 300 MWp solar photovoltaic plant in Paraguay. The project is located near the Villeta fertilizer plant in the Central Department, where the company states there is ample land available for development. The agreement is subject to the fulfillment of specific conditions before it becomes effective.

The initiative is being advanced by Atome Power, a renewable power generation and storage division created by the group in 2025. According to a regulatory filing, once the power purchase agreement (PPA) issues for Atome Paraguay are resolved, the company expects to launch the feasibility study. Atome also plans to develop an industrial park in the region centered on solar power generation and battery storage.

The filing specifies the scope of the study as 300 MWp. When Atome created its power division in May 2025, it had identified a solar plant of up to 400 MW with storage near Villeta as its first project. At that time, the company had secured a preferential purchase right over 685 hectares of land near the Buey Rodeo substation, where the average solar irradiance is 4.85 kWh/m²/day. The company still retains a project of up to 400 MW with batteries in its corporate information.

The conditions related to the PPA are tied to the current situation of the Villeta industrial project. On June 9, the Paraguayan government repealed several decrees related to the so-called "convergence industries," including Decrees No. 5306 and 5307 issued on January 16. The following day, Atome announced that this decision eliminated the tariff that was to be included in a new fixed-price PPA with the National Electricity Administration (ANDE), the signing of which was one of the prerequisites for the first disbursement of project financing.

On July 20, Atome stated that it was still negotiating the PPA terms with Paraguayan authorities, and that its international financiers continue to support the project. These financiers include BID Invest, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the European Investment Bank (EIB), Dutch development bank FMO, and the Green Climate Fund.

BID Invest is already involved in the Villeta project, but Thursday's announcement could not confirm whether the institution supports the new solar study. According to a March report, BID Invest coordinated $420 million in funding for the Villeta green hydrogen fertilizer project, whose total financing was subsequently set by Atome at $665 million. The facility is planned to feature a 110 MW alkaline electrolyzer and is expected to produce approximately 260,000 tonnes of calcium ammonium nitrate per year.

Atome is launching its solar project at a time when Paraguay is beginning to open its doors to large-scale photovoltaics. With support from the World Bank, ANDE is preparing to tender a plant of approximately 140 MW in Loma Plata, Boquerón Department, under Law No. 7599/2025. This law allows for renewable energy power purchase contracts of up to 30 years and explicitly covers projects with storage systems.