Winning over local communities and negotiating land access are becoming increasingly important to the development of the new energy capacity in Chile.
According to the latest report by the energy ministry’s sustainable energy centre, Chile currently has 836MW in operation, 61MW under construction and more than 7GW undergoing environmental assessment or with the licence already in place.
However, as well as official approval, new projects need to obtain the consent of people living near the sites to prevent protests or legal challenges hindering development. Community opposition has become a major hurdle to new energy projects in Chile, including wind farms.
Windpower Monthly, 15/12/2014 – read full article