New deal provides one-third of construction materials supplier Votorantim Cimentos energy needs and is a foundation for its plan to increase renewable energy consumption in Brazil to 75%
Atlas Renewable Energy and cement maker Votorantim Cimentos have signed a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) for 100 MW of solar energy for the next 15 years.
The solar energy provided through this agreement will support the energy needs of Votorantim Cimentos’ production units and distribution centres located in the south, south east, and midwest regions of Brazil.
With the new partnership, the project will be responsible for around a third of Votorantim Cimentos’ energy consumption in the country, equivalent to supplying energy to 424,000 homes.
The new energy generation will come from Atlas’ Luiz Carlos Solar Project in the municipality of Paracatu, Minas Gerais, which will have an installed capacity of 787 MWp, and almost two-thirds (470 MWp) will be bought by Votorantim Cimentos.
Carlos Barrera is CEO of Atlas Renewable Energy. He said: “This partnership with Votorantim Cimentos confirms Atlas’ repeated ability to partner with blue chip companies of Latin America’s industrial sector to help them make the energy transition. It also contributes to building Brazil’s sustainable production supply chain powered by clean energy. At the same time, we are proud that our project, Luiz Carlos, will promote Atlas’ best-in-class ESG programs targeting true sustainable development.”
The project is also part of Votorantim Cimentos’ investment portfolio to increase its structural competitiveness, ensuring a better long-term position and sustainable growth.
“This project is an important step in our decarbonization journey and is aligned with Votorantim Cimentos’ 2030 Sustainability Commitments,” says Álvaro Lorenz, Global Sustainability Director at Votorantim Cimentos. “In all the regions where we operate, our focus is to intensify efficiency and incorporate the use of renewable energy, increasing the volume of self-produced clean energy we consume and, consequently, our competitiveness, generating benefits for society and the planet.”
Luiz Carlos Solar Project
The Luiz Carlos solar project will be located in Paracatu, Minas Gerais, a municipality that is already home to other Atlas solar projects, which will allow the company to continue investing in the development of the region, in environmental and social terms, with an emphasis on hiring local labor.
With the start of construction, Atlas will actively support robust environmental, social, and governance (ESG) programs for sustainable development. Atlas’ flagship program, “We are all part of the same energy,” during the construction of the Boa Sorte Solar Project, located in the same municipality, trained over 300 women from surrounding towns to contribute to the construction of the solar plants. Additionally, Atlas’s award-winning Ed-Mundo program will also be implemented. The program is designed to educate young students from underrepresented communities in programming, IT, robotics and entrepreneurship and empower them to play a central role in social transformation, creating job opportunities and additional sources of income for their communities and families.
Votorantim Cimentos’ goal is to have 45% of the energy consumed globally come from renewable sources by 2030. With this new project, 75% of the energy consumed by the company in Brazil will come from clean sources.
Since its foundation, Votorantim Cimentos says it has always been concerned with generating its own energy for the production of its plants. In the state of Bahia, the company operates the concession for the 160-megawatt Pedra do Cavalo Hydroelectric Plant, as well as owning four Small Hydroelectric Plants (SHPs) in other locations and participating in the Machadinho Hydroelectric Plant (HPP) consortium in southern Brazil. In 2022 it also signed an agreement with Auren to build a wind farm in the northeast of Brazil, with a capacity of 220 megawatts, which went into operation in early 2023, adding 55 average MW of renewable energy to its portfolio.
The conclusion of the agreement still depends on the usual conditions for operations of this nature, including the approval of the Administrative Council for Economic Defense (CADE).
About Atlas Renewable Energy
Atlas Renewable Energy is an international renewable energy generation company that has developed and built about 5.2 GW of renewable energy assets, of which 2.3 GW are operational. Atlas has specialized in developing, financing, constructing, and operating renewable energy projects since early 2017. The company has an experienced team with a deep global power market and renewable energy expertise, with the longest track record in the renewable energy industry in Ibero-America.
The company’s strategy is focused on helping large corporates make the energy transition to 100% clean energy. Atlas Renewable Energy is widely recognized for its high standards in developing, constructing, and operating large-scale projects, as well as its deep and long-standing track record in ESG and sustainable development.
About Votorantim Cimentos
Votorantim Cimentos is a construction materials and sustainable solutions company with more than 13,000 employees. The portfolio of construction materials includes concrete, mortar and aggregates. The company also operates in the areas of agricultural inputs, waste management and co-processing. Votorantim Cimentos units are strategically close to the most important growing consumer markets and are present in ten countries in addition to Brazil: Argentina, Bolivia, Canada, Spain, the United States, Luxembourg, Morocco, Tunisia, Turkey and Uruguay.
