The Fernández government signed last night a contract with the firm Cogentrix Energy regarding a 300 megavolt power generation facility to be built in San Pedro de Macor’s. The three-generator complex represents an investment of US$267 million. The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has said that it will finance US$75 million of the deal, while CDC, a development finance arm of the British government, will cofinance an unspecified portion of the remainder. Signing the deal for the government was Technical Secretary of the Presidency Temístocles Montás, who hailed the agreement as something "completely new." The government is not buying the plants or otherwise shouldering debt; rather, it is simply guaranteeing a market for the electricity they generate. The complex is slated to enter into operation before August 16, 2000, the end of President Fernández’s term of office.
