Source: RTT
Brazil has signed a contract with the Norte Energia consortium for the construction of a hydro-electric dam on a tributary of the Amazon.
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on Thursday signed the contract on behalf of his government for the construction of the Belo Monte hydro-electric dam on the Xingu river, a tributary of the Amazon in the northern state of ParaLula said he himself had criticized the project before being made aware of the advantages the proposed dam would provide the country's supply of electricity (Many environmentalists have protested the proposed construction of the dam).
"You cannot imagine how many times I spoke against Belo Monte without even knowing what it was about, and it is precisely during my government that Belo Monte is being unveiled," Lula said.
Insisting that the signing of the contract was a "victory for Brazil's energy sector," he said his government would try to convince the opponents that "we took seriously into account environmental and social issues."
Earlier, the bidding of the project was stopped thrice since the project was first proposed in the 1990s. Thursday's signing was made possible only after a final court appeal by the government allowed Norte Energia, led by the state-owned Companhia Hidro Eletrica do Sao Francisco, to be awarded the contract.
Opponents to the 3.75-mile-long dam argue that it will inundate about 190 square miles of virgin Amazon rainforest, thereby causing irreparable environmental damage to the region. Environmental campaigners say that the camp will displace more than 50,000 Red Indians.
However, the government says that the dam is crucial for development, pointing out that the project will provide thousands of jobs for the local population. It claims that the dam, when it becomes operational in 2015, would provide electricity to more than 23 million homes.
Officials say those displaced by the dam will be adequately compensated as the bid-winning consortium has promised to pay $800m for protecting the environment and for rehabilitation of those affected by the project.
The construction of the proposed dam is expected to cost between $11bn and $17bn. When completed, it will be third largest of its kind in the world, after the Three Gorges in China and Itaipu dam being jointly run by Brazil and Paraguay.