The U.S. Export-Import Bank has made numerous investments in solar-projects using U.S.-made solar equipment in the past. These include investments in Africa and India, for instance. And now, the federal bank is making an investment in solar for its southern neighbor, Mexico by supporting a new rooftop installation using U.S.-made Suniva Inc. modules.

On Jan. 28, the Ex-Im Bank announced it would guarantee a $780,000 loan to support the development of a 500 kilowatt photovoltaic (PV) rooftop for Grupo Metal Intra S.A.P.I. de C.V. (GMI) in Mexico at its main manufacturing facility in the city of Querétaro. The company is a prefabricated-building manufacturer. When completed, the project will be one of the largest rooftop PV installtions in Mexico.

“Suniva is very proud to partner with a leading and visionary organization like GMI/Intragreen in Mexico,” said Suniva Chairman and CEO John Baumstark. “It is most fitting that the first major export and installation of our modules in Mexico is utilizing a guarantee from the U.S. Export-Import Bank with which we have a longstanding and valuable relationship.”

Under the agreement, the Ex-Im Bank is guaranteeing a $780,000, 10-year loan to finance the export of Suniva PV modules made in Norcross, Ga. UPS Capital Business Credit is making the loan. The project will be integrated by Intragreen Tecnología Sustenable, S.A.P.I. de C.V. and will install it and connect it to the grid. The guarantee will also support approximately $130,000 of related local costs, according to Ex-Im Bank.

“With this authorization, Ex-Im Bank is continuing its strong support for Suniva’s high-efficiency exports that are sustaining high-quality jobs in Georgia,” said Ex-Im Bank Chairman and President Fred Hochberg. “Our financing also benefits GMI, which will reap clean-energy savings for years to come. We hope to support many more such projects in Mexico and around the world.”



The transaction is being made under Ex-Im Bank’s medium-term buyer financing that can support smaller-scale renewable-energy projects in Mexico and in most other countries. It builds on previous solar projects that Ex-Im Bank has supported in Europe, India, Mexico and other Latin American countries. Some of those projects have reaped much more from the bank, like the $2 billion in solar projects the bank is funding in South Africa and the $3.2 million loan it support a MiaSole project in India.