Renewable energies

Renewable energies come from sources considered inexhaustible, and they’re defined because, in their transformation and use processes, they are not consumed on a human scale, either because of the immense amount of energy they contain or because they can regenerate themselves over time.

They are usually classified as conventional and non-conventional. Among the conventional ones, the most important to date is large-scale hydropower. On the other hand, at the national level, wind, small hydropower (plants up to 20 MW), biomass, biogas, geothermal, solar, and marine energy are defined as sources of Non-Conventional Renewable Energy (NCRE). It is not surprising that, given the remarkable penetration and establishment of these types of energy, they will become conventional at some point, as may be the case with solar energy, which has been widely developed in recent years.

In Chile, the energy consumed for heating and transportation comes from fossil fuels. If we want to meet our carbon neutrality goal by 2050, we need to transform all our energy consumption into electricity consumption derived from clean energies, which are also more economical today.

We’re at a crucial moment in history. We have to take advantage of the enormous energy potential that our geography grants us, especially the unparalleled solar radiation and the strength of our winds. Having these clean and inexhaustible sources represents a unique opportunity to break with decades-long environmental gaps and at the same time favor clean and less expensive energy consumption, as required by our population from north to south.

During 2022, the installed capacity of Renewable Energies has been increasing, as has the share of NCRE in power generation.

Source: Ministry of Energy