The permit and license is the final approval required by the Secretaria de Recursos Naturales y Ambiente (SERNA), Honduras's Natural Resources and Environmental Ministry. The project is now complete for submission to Empresa Nacional de Energia Electrical (ENEE), the Honduras National Electric Company, for its Power Purchase Agreement (PPA). The PPA is the final step before Congressional approval and start of construction. Minerco expect to apply for the PPA by the end of this year.
As previously announced, the Chiligatoro project has been formally approved by the local communities, local Municipality and the Honduran National Commission of Energy. It has received all the necessary approvals and contracts from SERNA, including the Operations Contract and Water Contract. All the necessary parcels of land have been secured for the construction of all phases of the Chiligatoro Project.
"We are very pleased to announce the final approval required from SERNA. The Environmental License allows us to formally submit the Chiligatoro Project to ENEE for the Power Purchase Agreement. While we will continue to expand and diversify our business model and scope, the company plans to focus on the Chiligatoro Project and its construction in 2012," said V. Scott Vanis, Minerco's President and CEO.
