Our last coal-fired power plant in Chile has been shut down

We are the first company in Chile to stop generating coal-fired energy. On September 30, we shut down the last coal-fired unit in the Bocamina power plant, 530 kilometers from the capital Santiago, ending a journey which began with the closure of Tarapacà in 2019 and Bocamina’s Unit I in 2021. Thus, we’ve achieved the 2040 decarbonization target, set just 3 years ago by Chile’s National Decarbonization Plan, 18 years ahead of schedule. According to Salvatore Bernabei, CEO of Enel Green Power, this historic step “highlights the capacity of the Enel Group to honor its commitments regarding the decarbonization of its energy systems, and this is coupled with the continued strengthening of our renewables portfolio, which includes wind, geothermal, solar, hydro and battery storage systems.” A just transition for employees The Bocamina power plant was opened in the 1970s, and for two decades it was fundamental to the economic development of Chile and the community of Coronel, a city overlooking the Pacific Ocean. It had a central role again at the end of the 1990s as a result of the water crisis, and once more in 2007 when the natural gas supply from Argentina was cut off. Today, along with the decarbonization of energy generation, we have an energy transition strategy devoted to the plant workers, the contractors and the local communities. Following the closure of Unit II, we organized relocation for the plant employees and the implementation of initiatives for the social, economic and commercial development of Coronel. And that’s not all: we’re undertaking an ambitious project to reforest a 10-hectare area of the plant’s ash landfill that will no longer be used. Furthermore, in line with circular economy principles, we’re studying various alternatives for reusing the plant’s assets, so as to inject new life into the site and create further development opportunities for the area. The continued growth of renewables Our renewable footprint in Chile is continually growing, even as we speak. From August to September we started commercial operations at two solar plants, Azabache and Sol de Lila, totaling 221 MW, while in the coming months we await the connection of a further 500 MW or so of renewable capacity, guaranteeing clean, sustainable and reliable energy. After the phase out of coal – which according to our Group’s Strategic Plan is scheduled to happen globally in 2027 – the next step will be to cease gas-fueled energy generation by 2040, replacing thermoelectric power plants with renewable energy generation and promoting the hybridization of renewables with storage solutions. As a result, we predict that investments connected to our different business models will lead to a total renewable capacity of approximately 77 GW by 2024, with an objective of reaching approximately 154 GW by 2030.

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Our last coal-fired power plant in Chile has been shut down

Our last coal-fired power plant in Chile has been shut down

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