Itaipu Binacional says its hydroelectric plant continues to operate normally despite the banking crisis in Paraguay. (Foto: Instagram)
Itaipu Binacional says a banking crisis in Paraguay has not affected operations at the hydroelectric plant jointly administered by Brazil and Paraguay. The company said the facility, described as the world’s third-largest hydroelectric power plant, continues to operate normally.
In a statement, Itaipu’s Brazilian administration said it has no funds deposited or invested in Ueno Bank, the financial institution at the center of the crisis. Paraguay’s central bank began dissolving the bank earlier this week. Itaipu said the situation is not expected to affect electricity generation or supply.
The company said its investments follow internal rules and procedures and are managed separately by each country’s side of Itaipu. Those rules consider security, liquidity and returns, it said. “Itaipu Binacional clarifies that no financial resources managed by the Brazilian side are deposited or invested in Ueno Bank,” the statement said, adding that operations continue “with no impact on energy production or supply.”
Opened in 1982, the Itaipu dam was built by Brazil and Paraguay on the Paraná River, which runs along the border between the two countries. The nations share the facility equally, but each side’s administration is independent. Brazilian funds move through Brazil’s banking system.
The Paraguayan side of Itaipu has been linked to the Ueno Bank crisis because it is among the public institutions in Paraguay that held funds at the bank. The amount associated with Itaipu is not clear. Estimates indicate Ueno held about $850 million in Paraguayan public funds, equivalent to approximately 4.5 billion Brazilian reais; those funds were frozen after the bank’s dissolution process began.
The scandal has prompted Paraguayan politicians, including allies of President Santiago Peña, to initiate impeachment proceedings against him. Peña, elected in 2023, had ties to the bank and was a shareholder in a company connected to Ueno until March 2025. He submitted a resignation request on November 5, but Paraguay’s Congress rejected it. Impeachment proceedings remain under discussion and could result in the 47-year-old president losing his parliamentary immunity.
