The advisor to the executive secretary of Olade, Medardo Cadena, stressed on Wednesday the main findings of a report on electrical integration in South America and the Caribbean.

He pointed out that in this geographic area there are 1,679 kilometers of international lines, with 4,775 kilometers projected for the future.

According to the expert, in 2023 energy exchanges grew by 28 percent, enough to meet 3,7 percent of regional energy demand.

Electrical integration stands out as a solution to extreme scenarios, such as joint water shortages, reduction of costs and guaranteeing energy security, Cadena emphasized. To achieve this, he urged the region to cooperate in energy and develop shared infrastructure to guarantee a resilient system and move towards a sustainable future.

For his part, specialist Fabio García warned that the interconnection infrastructure still has 60 percent of unused capacity.

He noted that regional exchanges occur within the framework of a strong bilateral relationship, through national agreements, but the objective is to reach a coordinated electricity market, such as the one servicing Central America.

The study by Olade, with headquarters in Quito, also warns of the need to deepen climate impact studies and explore the potential of new regional integration infrastructures.

The occurrence of periods of joint hydrological scarcity, such as those recently recorded in Colombia and Ecuador, reveal the problem is associated with extreme weather phenomena.

ied/arc/avr