The United Kingdom hands Chile four studies on offshore wind

On 12 August the residence of the British ambassador in Santiago hosted the presentation of four studies on the development of offshore wind energy in Chile. The reports were produced by ORE Catapult, the United Kingdom’s leading innovation centre for offshore renewable energy, as part of an initiative led by the British Embassy and funded by the UK Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade.

The event was opened by the British Ambassador to Chile, David Concar, and included a panel discussion titled “Next Steps for Offshore Wind in Chile”, with representatives from the Ministry of Energy and InvestChile among the participants.

The underlying assessment is favourable: according to the studies, Chile has exceptional conditions to develop a competitive offshore wind industry. The operational conclusion is more demanding. To turn that potential into concrete projects, the reports point to the need to strengthen regulatory and permitting frameworks, and to adopt an integrated approach that aligns energy, port and spatial planning with a long-term strategy able to give investors certainty.

The work also looks at regional effects. The reports highlight the potential of offshore wind to revitalise strategic ports, attract new industrial investment and create highly skilled jobs, particularly in industrial regions such as Biobío. The recommendations draw on British experience, site visits and consultations with stakeholders in both countries, and cover ports, electricity transmission, maritime planning, energy policy, workforce development and environmental considerations.

The material was published in two main documents: recommendations for offshore wind development in Chile, running to 51 pages, and a strategic assessment of the country’s port capacity, at 40 pages. The debate they open, over which port and which regulation will enable the first generation of projects, is the one that stays on the bilateral agenda.

Source: British Embassy Santiago presents recommendations to advance offshore wind development in Chile, GOV.UK. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.