Solaria to invest $5.7 billion in Uruguay: 350 MW of solar for data centers

Uruguay's president, Yamandú Orsi, and the Spanish company Solaria Energía y Medio Ambiente signed an agreement on October 14, 2026 to build in Uruguay a technology park of data centers of up to 500 MW and 350 MW of solar photovoltaic capacity, with a total investment of 5.7 billion dollars. Of that amount, 5.5 billion goes to the data centers and 200 million to the solar plants, according to the statement from the Presidency of Uruguay.

The project will operate under the free trade zone regime in the departments of Canelones, San José and Florida. The first stage covers 200 MW of data centers and the 350 MW of photovoltaic capacity, with operation expected around 2029; the second adds 300 MW of additional computing, with the possibility of expanding solar generation. According to Telesemana, the minister of Industry, Energy and Mining, Fernanda Cardona, noted that the announced figure does not include equipment.

The purchase and sale scheme combines own generation and a contract. El Cronista reports that the Administración Nacional de Usinas y Trasmisiones Eléctricas (UTE), the state utility, will buy the solar output through a power purchase agreement (PPA) expected to run up to 40 years. For the region, the case shows a model in which the computing operator builds its own renewable supply and secures backup with a long-term PPA, a scheme investors view as a reference amid the growth in data center electricity demand.

Employment figures match the scale:

- 3,100 temporary jobs in the construction of the first stage, 2,400 in data centers and 700 in solar parks. - 1,500 permanent jobs once the complex operates at full capacity.

Solaria already operates in Uruguay the Yarnel parks, in Río Negro, and Natelu, in Soriano, which sell their electricity to UTE, according to the Presidency. The agreement covers management of the free trade zone and connection of the complex to the country's transmission grid.

The next verification point is the start-up of the first stage around 2029 and the execution of the long-term PPA with UTE, in addition to the contractual conditions still pending under the agreement.

This article was written with the assistance of artificial intelligence from verified sources and reviewed by a human editor before publication.