In 2005, Enel Green Power Latin America and Empresa Nacional de Petróleo (ENAP), the National Petroleum Corporation in Chile, signed an agreement regarding geothermal resources development, exploration and exploitation aimed at installing the first geothermal electric power plant in Chile and South America.
The project includes a geothermal power plant of 50 MW of capacity to produce 375 GWh of electricity per year to inject Interconnected System of the Greater North (SING).
The start of construction is estimated in the first quarter of 2012, and the start of operation of the plant, in the first quarter 2014. The project is currently undergoing environmental assessment.
Enel Green Power Latin America and ENAP work together in two companies “Empresa Nacional de Geotermia, S.A.” (ENG) in which EGP has a 51% stake and ENAP a 49% stake and “Geotérmica del Norte, S.A. (GDN) in which EGP has a 51% participation of equity, ENAP a 44% stake and CODELCO (Corporación Nacional del Cobre) a 5% stake
ENAP is a state-owned energy company, which actively participates in the exploration, production and refining of hydrocarbons as well as the distribution and trading of fuels.
ENG and GDN own several geothermal energy concessions, which are in different exploration phases.
