The rhythm of the Enel group in Chile does not stop. From Italy, within the framework of Capital Markets Day, the company announced an investment plan for the next three years of 2,200 million euros (about 2,600 million dollars) in our country.
The group’s financial director, Alberto De Paoli, clarified that this is in line with what they had contemplated in the previous plan, “although in Chile we are experiencing the effects of the exchange rate and, therefore, it is a little less than provided”. This, referring to the investments reported in 2020 for more than 2,000 million euros in the country, about 2,375 million dollars.
In this regard, it was Enel’s CEO himself, Francesco Starace, who, in the middle of the presentation, warned that the figures for all countries are indicative and do not represent a commitment, since they will only invest if they see the correct return.
An aspect that is not entirely encouraging in Chile is the tension faced by the electricity system, which recently had a new effect, after the authority gave the first sign that the withdrawal of Bocamina II could be postponed.
When asked at a press conference about a possible risk in the decarbonization process due to this situation, Starace said that “not because there is a shortage of gas or water resources, we are going to start and open coal plants here and there.” In his opinion, “we are only talking about a slight delay, but the process will continue.”
At the meeting, the company said that it expects to mobilize total investments of 210,000 million euros (235,000 million dollars) between 2021 and 2030, of which 190,000 million dollars will be invested directly by the Enel group (being 6% on the previous plan ) and 44.836 million dollars catalyzed through third parties.
By 2030, the group expects to reach a total renewable capacity of around 154 GW, tripling its 2020 portfolio; increase its network customer base by 12 million; and promote the electrification of consumption, increasing electricity sales by almost 30% while focusing on going beyond basic services.
And, in addition, the group plans to directly invest around 179,000 million dollars through the “Ownership” business model, mainly in “Level 1” countries. In this category is the United States, Peru, Chile, among others. According to Enel CEO Francesco Starace, this year’s plan, with $ 190 billion of direct investments by 2030, “is fundamental.” Starace said that they will try to understand the position of the new president, adding that it is a “great time for Chile” in that there is a huge demand for products such as copper.
Reference-www.eleconomista.com.mx