Mining giant Anglo American signed an agreement to buy power from a huge wind farm in Brazil that its developer said marks a record deal of its type for renewable energy in the South American nation.

Casa dos Ventos will sell output from an average 95MW a year to the mining group from its 504MW Rio do Vento project, said a statement.

The 20-year PPA starting from 2022 “is the largest volume of purchase of renewable energy between a final consumer and a generator in Brazil”, according to a statement from the developer.

The deal will underpin about 30% of the miner’s power consumption in Brazil, it added.

Lucas Araripe, director of New Business of Casa dos Ventos, said: “We have developed a new model, in which we assume the risks of construction and operation of the project and, once it starts operating, the customer can exercise the option of becoming a partner in the plant and becoming a self-producer.”

The agreement is the latest corporate supply deal struck for Rio do Vento, already one of the largest projects in the region and set to double in scale to 1GW in a planned second phase that would also include a hybrid solar element.

“Rio do Vento is a unique project. The winds that blow in the region are intense and constant, a characteristic that allows us to work with contracts and far more competitive rates,” said Araripe.

The project's first stage uses V150 4.2MW wind turbines from Denmark’s Vestas.

Wind

Mining giant Anglo American buys Brazilian wind power in 'record' renewable energy deal