Mining sector the biggest opportunity for PV in Chile but financing and PPAs rely on technical acume

A recent PV Insider webinar on the prospects for financing PV projects in Chile is now available for viewing.

The 60 minute webinar addressed the forms of financing available likely to be available and the different stakeholders involved as well as the technological and project variables examined by interested investors.


Hervé Collin,Chile Country Manager at Astris Finance outlined the multiple forms of funding available and some of the anticipated terms in deals. He also noted that a key concern in financing projects is the lack of irradiation data taken from ground measurements rather than solely satellite data. Satellite data is unable to give exact measurements for specific areas, which is crucial in determining the exact siting for a project.

Echoing this sentiment, Paul Brucke, a PV specialist at Black and Veatch highlighted the key technological variables considered in project financing. He mentioned that in Chile a coherent maintenance strategy is essential, due to the rurality of projects and the estimated costs of maintenance. As so few projects are in the ground yet, there is little data to validate projections and current performance models making some banks more cautious.

An audience poll conducted during the webinar asked the audience where they believed the sustained demand for PV power will come from in Chile, with the majority answering with the mining industry. Specifying the mining community as an off-taker is a totally new phenomenon globally and is also reflected by concerns over grid connection in the northern and central grids. Further standards and roadmaps will be required before investors are more comfortable financing utility-scale solar connected to the grid.

The webinar recordings and accompanying presentations are available for download now and can be accessed here:

http://www.pv-insider.com/latam/en-content3.php

Contact information:

Letty Thomas
lthomas@pv-insider.com
PV Insider

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