Experts say Renewables offer a Solution for the Energy Supply and Cost Challenges of Chilean Mines
Chilean mines face a clear challenge: the country is running short on energy and prices are very high. In a market review published this week (and available to download below) mining and renewables experts, including representatives from Collahuasi, SolarReserve, SMA, and Enermine, discuss the appetite for renewables projects in the Chilean mining sector.
Interesting quotes include:
“One of the directions that the country has to go is using renewable energy sources, such as wind and solar energy,”
“We always wanted to put in renewable energy, but couldn’t get a partnership with anyone willing to commit on such a mine life.”
– Dominic Duffy, COO, Mandalay Resources Corp
“The Atacama Desert, in northern Chile, has arguably the world’s strongest solar resource,”
“There’s a lot of pent-up investment appetite for Chile. As these new mines are developed and as commodity prices rebound, there will be commensurate requirements for more power supply,”
– Joel Link, VP Development and Global Head of Mining Development, SolarReserve
“Mines are interested in having lower operation and maintenance costs and decreasing the costs related to energy,”
– Daniel Rosende, Managing Director, SMA South America SpA
“With the power tender, we wanted to know more about the market for renewables,”
“If developers have good and fair prices, they could increase their share in this market.”
“Today, SolarPack supplies around 25 megawatts in the peak hours, the hours with sun, but we don’t have more space to add other contracts with the same characteristics because the mine operates around the clock.”
– Verónica Cortez Silva, Superintendent of Strategic Supplies, Collahuasi
To understand the market appetite and opportunity download the market review below