Coal news and updates

US-based AES Corporation subsidiary AES Andes has posted a US$443mn loss in the second quarter of the year as it implements an ambitious five-year strategy to decarbonize its Chilean generation park.

 

During the first half of the year, AES Andes has lost US$266mn, according to a results presentation. In the same period last year, it posted a US$138mn profit despite the pandemic.

 

The firm aims to reduce its carbon footprint by 57% by 2025, it said, and have 66% of its Ebitda come from renewable generation by that year.

 

To achieve this, the company is updating commitments to retire its coal-fired generation park, with plans to phase out 72% of its capacity by 2025, being left with 832MW by that year, down from 3GW. 

 

This will be achieved through the early retirement of its Angamos, Ventanas 3 and Ventanas 4 units, which the firm expects to decommission in June 2025. The 282MW Norgener and 550MW Cochrane units are planned to remain in the portfolio.   

 

Asked if the company would be prepared for a potential acceleration of coal retirement by 2025, as proposed in a bill currently under discussion in the senate, CEO Ricardo Falú told the results call that the company would have limited exposure to coal by that date.

 

“The situation we are facing today in the system clearly speaks of the need of the system to be properly adapted before we shut down all coal. This not only includes more renewable energy but also renewable capacity, and the transmission that is needed. Our exposure is very limited in 2025, [limited] only to Norgener and Cochrane, where we have a 30% stake,” he said.

 

At the same time, AES Andes is planning to grow its renewable capacity to 3.78GW by 2025, a 175% increase over its 2017 capacity of 1.37GW.

 

Meanwhile, the company’s embattled 531MW Alto Maipo run-of-the-river hydroelectric generator is 98% complete and expected to start synchronization with the national system before the end of the year, the company said.

 

AES is also planning to add a 148MW storage component to the Andes Solar IV project in the second half of 2023 to cover five hours of supply.

 

Source : https://www.bnamericas.com/en/news