October 19, 2022

With the aim of bringing together representatives from academia, the government, and industry to discuss the challenges of energy transition and the energy crisis in Chile, the Energy Transition Center (CENTRA UAI) of the Faculty of Engineering and Sciences at Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez organized the panel discussion “Energy Transition and Crisis: An Academic, Economic, and Regulatory Perspective.” The event took place on Friday, October 28, in a virtual format.

The panel featured:

  • David Robinson, Ph.D. in Economics, senior researcher at the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies, and director of DRA Economics Consulting.
  • Claudio Agostini, Ph.D. in Economics, CENTRA UAI member, and academic at the Faculty of Engineering and Sciences.
  • María José Reveco, Master in Economics and head of the Fuels and New Energies Division at the Ministry of Energy.
  • Rodrigo Castillo, academic director of the Diploma in Regulation at UAI.

The session was moderated by Daniel Gutiérrez, lawyer, managing partner at BGS Energy Law, and CENTRA UAI member.

Providing a general framework for the discussion, Daniel Olivares, director of CENTRA UAI, highlighted that the global energy crisis has directly impacted Chile, leading to a sustained increase in gasoline, kerosene, and diesel prices. Olivares added that the situation is compounded by:

  • A high dollar exchange rate,
  • A prolonged drought,
  • And a transmission system operating at its limit, unable to handle the full output of available renewable energy.

These factors, Olivares noted, have created a scenario of scarcity and high prices in Chile’s electricity market.

Source: Club de Innovación.