Particle.news
Download on the App Store

Chinese Tranche Clears Way to Restart La Barrancosa Hydroelectric Works in Santa Cruz

Provincial officials are finalizing labor terms to bring back roughly 1,800 workers under a 90% local-hiring rule.

Overview

  • A US$150 million disbursement was confirmed, with US$136 million credited in Argentina after a late-December request and US$14 million kept in China for imported machinery.
  • Authorities met with the builder consortium and UOCRA to begin hiring in the coming weeks and resume concrete and electromechanical work.
  • La Barrancosa stands about 42% complete after a halt since December 2023, while the sister dam Cóndor Cliff remains near 20% following a 2018 landslide, with a possible shift in national oversight reported.
  • Financing comes from a Chinese bank consortium—CDB, ICBC and Bank of China—within a roughly US$4.714 billion package, of which about US$1.85 billion had been transferred before this tranche.
  • The construction UTE is led by Gezhouba (54%) alongside Eling Energía (36%) and Hidrocuyo (10%), with provincial diplomacy in Beijing credited for unlocking the funds.