Keeping the Lights on at Night: Supporting The World’s Largest Energy Storage Portfolio in Chile

Over the past several years, Chile has become one of the most promising countries in Latin America for investments in the renewable energy sector. In the first quarter of 2024, more than 40% of the country’s electricity consumption was sourced from renewable energy systems, continuing the trend across Latin America with total investment in the renewables market growing from $17 billion to $30 billion (Bloomberg). 

Chile’s unique geography presents a challenge to the country’s transmission grid which is often constrained in its ability to supply energy from its resource abundant northern region to its central and southernmost load centers. 

Hybrid renewable and battery storage projects are particularly important to providing more stable and lower carbon power supply in countries such as Chile where solar is a rapidly growing energy source. Such projects help to provide more stable power during the night when solar output is low.

The world’s largest hybrid solar and battery storage project

Grenergy Renovables, an independent renewable energy company based in Spain, is delivering the world’s largest hybrid solar and battery storage project, Oasis de Atacama, in northern Chile. Grenergy’s hybrid portfolio offers a solution to Chile’s grid constraints by mitigating the associated curtailment and high nighttime electricity prices.

Societe Generale played a pivotal role as a Lead Arranger and Green Loan Coordinator for $1.05 billion across three financings supporting the portfolio, which comprises 720 MWp (megawatt peak) solar PV (photovoltaic panels) and 3.7 GWh (Gigawatt hour) of battery storage capacity.

“Societe Generale has built a strong and global track record for advising and financing large-scale renewable energy projects to sustainably support the energy transition,” said Ben Koehler, a Managing Director Energy+ Group at Societe Generale Americas in New York. “Oasis de Atacama marked our first foray in Chile into hybrid solar and battery storage and serves as an important template for future hybrid renewable energy storage projects.”

Oasis de Atacama’s first phase is due for grid connection in the coming weeks, while the next three will go into operation later in 2025 and 2026. In late-2024, Grenergy sold a portion of the portfolio to ContourGlobal, and Grenergy intends to re-invest a significant amount of the proceeds of the sale in new renewable energy sector investments in Chile.