Invest Chile Project

The Invest Chile Programme is an Energy Ministry (represented by National Energy Commission (CNE) before 2010) - Chilean Economic Development Agency (CORFO) cooperation plan to support renewable energy projects and finance renewable energy generation nationwide. The programme includes two sub-programmes.The first initiative was a programme to provide non-conventional renewable energy (NCRE) projects connected to the grid with pre-investment stage financial incentives. In the period 2005-2009 the programme subsidised 50% of the total cost, with a USD 60,000 cap, of pre-feasibility studies and 50% of the total cost of pre-investment studies with a maximum cap of USD 160,000. A total of 217 wind, biomass, biogas, geothermal and small-scale hydroelectric projects have benefited from such support. In the period 2008-2010, CNE and Ministry of Energy transfered USD 2 million to CORFO to continue the programme. After 2010 the applications were received directly without contest.The second incentive was provided in 2008 when the development bank Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW) extended a €85 million loan to finance NCRE projects with credit facilities and low interest rates. This allowed 19 projects to be funded, mainly mini-hydro energy projects.Since 2012 the Renewables Energy Center (CER) which is part of CORFO, has developed two new contests to subsidize pre-investment studies of NCRE projects. The subsidy is up to 40% of the total study costs with a cap of CLF 1,000.To date 31 projects (5 biogas, 1 biomass, 13 wind, 4 PV and 7 mini-hydro), and 78 studies have been benefited for a total amount CLP 542 million

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