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Enel Chile has announced that next Friday, September 30, the Bocamina II coal-based power generation plant will close. The same has been announced by Engie for the same day, with the disconnection of unit 15 of the Tocopilla thermal power plant.
The framework for these decisions must be found in an agreement announced in 2018, by which the Chilean government and the partner companies of the Generadoras de Chile organization, AES Gener, Colbun, Enel and Engie, resolved not to build more coal plants and gradually close existing ones .
It is estimated, however, that by 2030 thermoelectric plants should still supply 25 percent of the demand, although a study by the Chilean Association of Renewable Energies and Storage (Acera) sees it feasible for Chile to leave coal for that same year .
Specifically, with the closure of Bocamina II, Enel Chile ensures that "it will be the first company in Chile to close all its coal-fired plants." This disconnection began in 2019, with the closure of the Tarapacá coal-fired unit and the following year with Bocamina I.
“A fair transition plan, an open and dialoguing process, which involves various actors such as employees, the community, local authorities, among others”, Enel judges this process.
Last March, the National Energy Commission (CNE) instructed Enel Generación to postpone the definitive closure and final disconnection of Bocamina II for four months, initially scheduled for May 31 of this year.
For its part, Engie also announced for September 30 the disconnection of unit 15 of the Tocopilla thermal power plant, the last one still operating in the complex. They also highlight from the company that these actions are possible "thanks to the commitment of our Tocopilla collaborators, who have adapted to these changes in a flexible and open manner."
In 2021, AES announced the early closure of its Angamos 1 and 2 and Nuevas Ventanas (windows 3) and Campiche (windows 4) coal-fired power plants of the AES Andes company, all located in highly industrialized areas, and which together total 1,097 MW. |
