UPM2 area of influence

The area chosen to install the UPM2 plant, located at the center of the country, is the Department of Durazno, at the border with the Department of Tacuarembó.

The Department of Durazno has a population of 57,084 inhabitants according to the Census of 2011, and 91% of the population is urban. The growth rate of the population shows negative figures in the last period between census (2004-2011). Tacuarembó shows similar conditions in the evolution of its population. It has 90,053 inhabitants and 89% lives in urban areas.

Geographical indicators.

The undertaking of UPM will be located in the Department of Durazno, about 5 km West of Pueblo Centenario and about 6 km Southeast of the city of Paso de los Toros, Department of Tacuarembó. The parcel of land is located in the South riverbank of Río Negro (the greatest internal river in the country in extension and flow), downstream of Gabriel Terra dam and upstream of Baygorria dam. Both dams comprise the national hydroelectrical system and are operated by the state company, UTE.

The land where the Plant will be placed is made up of five land registries, which in total take up an area in the order of 700 ha, out of which at most about 600 ha will be destined to the Free Trade Zone. Said parcels were previously destined to the agricultural and livestock production. Geographical coordinates of the barycenter of the undertaking are (542325.80 mE – 6363456.67 mS).

It is located 250 km from the capital city, main city and port of Uruguay, Montevideo.

In a radius of 100 kilometers with an epicenter in the chosen area, there are more than 200,000 people, including inhabitants of other Departments such as Cerro Largo, Treinta y Tres, Flores, Río Negro and Paysandú, apart from Tacuarembó and Durazno.

The most important locations are the two capital cities, Tacuarembó (57,000 inhabitants), 130 kilometers away, and Durazno (34,000 inhabitants), 70 kilometers away; the closest place to the future industrial site is Pueblo Centenario, with barely 1,400 inhabitants. Paso de los Toros is located a few kilometers away, and has a population of 13,000 people. The population density of Durazno is 5.1 inhabitants per square kilometer, and that of Tacuarembó is 6.0 inhabitants. As a reference, the national average is 18.8 inhabitants per km2.

Productive profile

The central area of the country, where Durazno and Tacuarembó are located, is characterized to date by a poor industrialization and a primary profile of production. At the same time, it is one of the areas with lower relative development in the country, when analyzing the proportion of homes under the line of poverty or due to unmet basic needs, as well as their regional competitiveness conditions.

It is a region characterized by natural prairie, abundant water mirrors and dry farming. Sheep and cattle breeding, as well as dairy production and, to a lesser extent, grain production, together with forestation, sum up the activity of this part of the country.

Durazno participates with 1.5% of the product in the total country as per estimates of economic activity of the department (2017); in the case of Tacuarembó, it represents 2% of the national GDP. When analyzing the productive structure, Durazno exhibits a specialization in the primary sector (30.5%), and has an industrial and service development below the mean. In Tacuarembó, the tertiary sector represents about half of the economic activity and the other half is divided more or less equitably between primary and secondary activities.

In both departments, about 90% of the exploitable surface is dedicated to livestock exploitation: its pastures are very apt for stockbreeding, both for the production of bovine cattle and ovine cattle.

In fact, two of the major meat processing plants of Uruguay are located in the area: Frigorífico Tacuarembó (in the namesake department) and BPU in Durazno, first and third among the exporters in the field so far in 2019. Other two plants in Durazno make up the local meat offer, Bilacor and Frigocerro. Estancias del Lago, one of the major dairy farms of the country, and second exporter in the field at a national level, is also located in Durazno.

Referring to businesses, one of the outstanding undertakings in the area is the rice drying and processing plant, Saman, in Tacuarembó (company which has eight plants throughout the country and is responsible for half of the national rice production), as well as several sawmills, among which Lumil and Frutifor, oriented to export, stand out.

The land is poorly fertile, so agriculture is limited to areas of corn, wheat and sunflower, and forestation. There is a high availability of usable lands for different foresting activities. Most of the local plantations of the region correspond to eucalyptus forests, mainly globulus and pine trees. Tacuarembó and Durazno are the fifth and tenth department, respectively, in surface destined to forestry production.

Labor market

Labor market indicators of the Department of Durazno as at 2018 show an activity rate similar to the mean of the country, and an employment rate lower than the national mean, while the unemployment rate is one of the highest at a national level. In Tacuarembó, unemployment is somewhat lower and is located within the country’s mean. One out of every three people who has a job, works in unregulated conditions, in both departments. Mainly in Pueblo Centenario, the percentage of young people who do not study or work is above the national mean (25.5% versus 17.8% of the mean).

Services

Pueblo Centenario, with its 1,400 inhabitants, depends mainly of the neighboring city of Paso de los Toros, or the capital city of the department, Durazno, for the provision of services. To date, Centenario does not have drainage, pharmacies, banks, ATMs, gas stations, or other basic services. Neither does it have services destined leisure activities, such as cinemas, theaters, or sports areas. This scenario will plausibly be modified soon, in view of the new reality that the region will be faced with due to the beginning of UPM’s works. In turn, Paso de los Toros, the closest city, has a bank, four gas stations and 300 lodging spaces.

Improvements to the communication services are currently being installed. Soon, Pueblo Centenario and Paso de los Toros will have optical fibre coverage. Also, the installation of an ATM in Pueblo Centenario is under way.

Referring to education, Pueblo Centenario has a public primary school, but it does not have secondary, technical, nor University education. In order to access higher levels of education, the families of Pueblo Centenario go to Paso de los Toros which is close by and has two high schools and a technical education center. Besides, the city of Tacuarembó has a Regional Center of the University of the Republic and Durazno has a Technological University center, both property of the State. The offer in the capital cities of the departments also includes training in private centers in primary and secondary education.

Even though the education insertion level in early childhood is very high, secondary education and mainly tertiary education in this reference area of the country is proportionately low. In both departments, people over 24 years old with university education are among 5 and 7% of the total.

Referring to health, Pueblo Centenario has a primary care center and any care which requires a deeper treatment must go to Paso de los Toros, where there is a public hospital, a private healthcare center, an emergency room and several clinics. Either way, by an agreement between the two private healthcare institutions operating in both departments (COMTA Tacuarembó and CAMEDUR Durazno), a new clinic will be installed in Pueblo Centenario. In the same way, another private healthcare service with main office in Montevideo is getting ready to open in this location. Also, in the capital cities of the departments there are public hospitals (in the case of Tacurembó, it is a reference healthcare center at a national level) and also private healthcare institutions. Neither of the healthcare centers has an heliport.

Connectivity rates of electrical services and drinking water in the locations close to the future site of the plant are close to 100%, while the percentages of homes connected to the drainage system are located about 15% in Centenario and close to 40% in Paso de los Toros.

Weather

The meteorological station closest to the affected area (Paso de los Toros) reports that the annual average temperature is 17.7 °C. In turn, the highest average temperature in the region is 23.2 °C and the minimum average temperature is 12.6 °C. Annual average rains are 1,287 mm. There is no typical rainy station, although in summer somewhat higher volumes of rain are recorded than in the rest of the year. Although the average of rainy days a year is 75, there are inter-annual variations. Annual average humidity is 74%. Average wind speed is 3,4 m/s.