A workshop on geothermal development in Chile was held in Santiago, Chile on 22 December.The event was to foster discussions about the geothermal potential in Chile and the real opportunities for geothermal development, with a focus on electricity generation and their possible impact on interconnected electricity systems in the country.
Attended by representatives of the Division of Renewable Energies of the Ministry of Energy, ACHEGEO.AG, Geothermal Council, ACERA, CEGA and ENEL among others. The event was held by Chile’s Ministry of Energy, in cooperation with the World Bank, who together are currently implementing a Technical Assistance Program for Geothermal Development in Chile. This project includes, among other things, the creation of a Geothermal Bureau with a participation of all key players of the industry.
The initiative, which will be implemented by Fundación Chile, a technical secretariat supported by the Energy Center of the University of Chile. Fundación Chile is in charge of the systemic analysis of different geothermal energy penetration scenarios, aiming to show the real opportunities for the development of high enthalpy geothermal energy projects for electricity generation, the operational and economic implications of their inclusion in interconnected electrical systems and their development potential in the national electricity market.
In this context, a first workshop was held on 22 December 2016 discussing the geothermal potential for development in Chile; possible development scenarios; as well as CAPEX and OPEX of geothermal projects. The workshop also discussed operational parameters of a geothermal plant and to review with the experts the methodological work for the systemic modelling.
