Awwal 23, 1432 H/Feb 26, 2011, SPA -- A Brazilian federal court late Friday ruled to suspend planned construction of a huge hydro-electric dam in the Amazon rainforest region, citing environmental concerns. The court in its ruling said the environmental requirements for the huge Belo Monte dam project had not been met, according to dpa. Indigenous groups and environmental organisations had massively criticised the plans for the 11,000-megawatt dam, the first phase of which was to have been completed in 2015. With the suspension, the planned financing of some 11 billion dollars by the national development bank BNDES was also put on ice.
