Chile:

Chile Looks to Launch Geothermal Insurance, Funding in 2014 (BNamericas)

(Courtesy CIA.gov)

Chile next year aims to launch a failed drilling insurance program alongside geothermal funding in 2014, the energy ministry's renewable energy head Carlos Barría told BNamericas on the sidelines of the 3rd BNamericas Hydro Power & Renewable Energy Summit in Santiago Wednesday.

"Any geothermal project in the world runs the risk of not being successful - of not finding the quantities of vapor that were expected. But in Chile it's even harder because we are just starting out and don't have much reserve information," Barría said.

The Chilean government is working with IDB and the World Bank to create failed drilling insurance to help alleviate some of the risk of exploratory drilling. The government is also asking US$30mn-35mn from the Clean Technology Fund (CTF) to help with costs.

If Chile is successful in launching drilling insurance and securing CTF funding, Barría has high expectations.

"By 2025-30 we hope to have 1,000-1,500MW of geothermal in Chile," he said. "In the next decade we expect to enter the world's top 10 in terms of geothermal."

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