The Santa Laura Small Hydroelectric Plant in the western region of the state of Santa Catarina started operations a month ago. Located between the Faxinal dos Guedes and Ouro Verde counties, the SHP counts on installed power supply of 15 MW.

The construction of the plant demanded investments of about US$ 35 million and the project is part of the Alternative Energy Source Incentive Program (PROINFA), which is coordinated by the Ministry of Mines and Energy (MME).

Besides from electric panels and transformers, WEG has supplied two 7.5 MW generators of 3360 RPM and a voltage of 13,800 V.
Turbines were supplied by HISA, a company specialized in manufacturing hydroelectric plant turbines.

Santa Catarina governor Luiz Henrique da Silveira attended the inauguration ceremony and during his speech he emphasized importance of using local suppliers such as WEG and Hisa, which means a considerable financial resources economy regarding state tax collection.

Also present were Eletrobras, Eletrosul and CELESC (Santa Catarina Electrical Center) representatives. WEG was represented by Mr. Sérgio Esteves, Energy Business Center manager.