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| Electric Coordinator of Chile | |
|---|---|
| Name | Coordinador Eléctrico Nacional |
| Native name | Coordinador Eléctrico Nacional de Chile |
| Formation | 1987 |
| Type | Independent system operator |
| Headquarters | Santiago, Chile |
| Region served | Chile |
| Leader title | Executive Director |
Electric Coordinator of Chile
The Electric Coordinator of Chile is an independent system operator that manages the national transmission system and coordinates generation dispatch across Chile. It interfaces with entities such as Comisión Nacional de Energía (Chile), Ministerio de Energía (Chile), Empresa Nacional del Petróleo (ENAP), Cochilco, and private utilities including Enel Chile, AES Andes, and Colbún. The Coordinator operates under frameworks influenced by laws such as the Law of General Bases of the State and regulatory instruments from the Superintendencia de Electricidad y Combustibles (SEC), while engaging with regional bodies like the Mercado Eléctrico Regional and international forums including the International Energy Agency and the Inter-American Development Bank.
The Coordinator traces roots to regulatory reforms in the late 1980s and early 1990s driven by policies of the Pinochet regime transition and subsequent democratic administrations including those of Patricio Aylwin and Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle, which promoted privatization and unbundling inspired by models from California Independent System Operator and the National Grid (UK). Foundational milestones include reorganization after the Electricity Act reforms and alignment with market design work by the World Bank and the Inter-American Development Bank, and subsequent modernization during administrations such as Michelle Bachelet and Sebastián Piñera to incorporate renewable integration influenced by events like the Copenhagen Summit and regional interconnection proposals with Argentina and Peru.
The Coordinator is structured as an autonomous nonprofit governed by a board drawn from major stakeholders including transmission companies such as Transelec, generation firms like Endesa Chile (now part of Enel), distribution companies including Chilectra and CGED, and institutional observers such as the Comisión Nacional de Energía (Chile), Superintendencia de Electricidad y Combustibles (SEC), and representatives from Universidad de Chile and Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile. Its governance documents reference principles from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and standards by the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), with oversight interactions with Congreso Nacional de Chile legislative committees and technical coordination with the Centro Nacional de Control de Energía.
The Coordinator is responsible for real-time dispatch and dayahead scheduling, operations of the National Interconnected System (SING) and Sistema Interconectado Central (SIC) prior to their merger, congestion management, ancillary services procurement, and reliability assessments. It implements market rules derived from legislation such as the Electricity Market Law and coordinates planning studies with transmission owners like Red Eléctrica de España-linked partners and international consultants from Black & Veatch and AECOM. The Coordinator also produces technical studies for entities such as CDEC-affiliated stakeholders, contributes to national energy policy discussions with the Ministerio de Energía (Chile), and supports interconnection studies with neighboring systems including Argentina and Bolivia.
Market operations overseen by the Coordinator include economic dispatch, imbalance settlement, spot price calculation, and ancillary markets for frequency regulation and reserves, interacting with market participants such as Colbún, AES Andes, Enel Chile, Pacific Hydro, and CGE. Market design elements reflect international practices from Nord Pool and New York Independent System Operator (NYISO) experiences and are constrained by Chilean statutes debated in the Congreso Nacional de Chile and supervised by the Superintendencia de Electricidad y Combustibles (SEC). The Coordinator publishes clearing prices, congestion rents, and reliability indices used by investors including International Finance Corporation and utilities engaged in power purchase agreements with corporates like Codelco and mining firms such as SQM.
Long-term transmission planning, outage coordination, and contingency analysis are core tasks undertaken with transmission owners such as Transelec, distribution firms like Chilectra, and planners from academic centers including Universidad Técnica Federico Santa María. Studies address integration of high-voltage lines, substations, reactive power compensation, and HVDC proposals inspired by projects like HVDC Leyte–Luzon and consult with vendors such as Siemens and ABB. Coordination extends to permitting interactions with the Comisión de Evaluación Ambiental and municipalities including Santiago, aligning with investment signals from regulators and lenders including the World Bank and CAF – Development Bank of Latin America.
The Coordinator has overseen rapidly increasing shares of wind, solar PV, and pumped hydro storage in response to national targets promoted by the Ministerio de Energía (Chile) and policies from administrations such as Michelle Bachelet and Sebastián Piñera. It manages variability and curtailment issues, integrates distributed generation from projects by developers like Mainstream Renewable Power and Solarpack, and coordinates with storage initiatives including proposals for pumped-storage hydroelectricity and battery projects supported by investors such as Enel Green Power and Iberdrola. Policy interactions involve carbon pricing debates, clean energy auctions, and regulatory frameworks influenced by multilateral guidance from the International Renewable Energy Agency and the World Bank.
The Coordinator has led emergency responses to major events including system-wide blackouts, extreme weather events affecting transmission corridors, and generation outages impacting mining zones like Antofagasta and Calama. It operates contingency protocols in collaboration with institutions such as the Superintendencia de Electricidad y Combustibles (SEC), utility emergency teams from Enel Chile and AES Andes, and civil protection agencies including Onemi. Post-incident analyses reference international incident reports such as those from the North American Electric Reliability Corporation and led to reforms in operational procedures, redundancy planning, and investment priorities guided by risk assessments from insurers and multilateral lenders including the Inter-American Development Bank.
Category:Energy in Chile Category:Electric power transmission system operators