Spanish renewable energy giant Grenergy Renovables recently held a groundbreaking ceremony for its flagship project, the Monte Á guila integrated solar and energy storage power station, in El Cabrero, Biob í o Region, Chile. This benchmark project with a total investment of nearly 300 million US dollars marks a substantial stage in the company's clean energy layout in South America and will also be an important milestone in Chile's energy storage development.

The Monte Á guila project is planned to have an installed capacity of 340MW, equipped with a 960MWh battery energy storage system, and is expected to be officially put into operation in early 2027. The project will be connected to the Chilean national power system through the Santa Mar í a Charr ú a transmission line, and will be accompanied by the construction of two transmission towers and other power infrastructure to achieve stable connection with Chile's main power grid.

This project is an important component of the "Oasis Central" project group developed by Grenergy in the central region of Chile. This cluster consists of five large-scale solar energy storage projects, located in the Maule and Biob í o regions, with a total installed capacity of 1.1GW and an energy storage capacity of 3.8GWh. It is planned to be put into operation gradually from 2027.

Of particular note is that the project group has signed a milestone 24/7 green power procurement agreement with Chilean state-owned copper giant Codelco. This basic load level clean energy supply model means that enterprises can achieve uninterrupted use of green electricity throughout the year, marking the shift of clean energy from auxiliary energy to main energy, fully demonstrating the urgent demand of large industrial enterprises for high-quality green electricity.

Grenergy's strategic layout is in line with its "Atacama Oasis" project being promoted in northern Chile, forming a north-south synergy. The northern project has a larger scale, with plans for 2GW of photovoltaic installed capacity and 11GWh of energy storage capacity, with a total investment of approximately 2 billion euros. The simultaneous promotion of two "oasis" projects demonstrates the company's deep layout in the Chilean market.

According to Grenergy's strategic plan announced on Capital Markets Day 2025, the company will invest 3.5 billion euros (approximately 3.7 billion US dollars) in global energy storage project development by 2027, with about 70% of the funds focused on the Chilean market. This investment plan fully reflects Chile's important position as the core market for clean energy in Latin America, and also demonstrates Grenergy's differentiated development strategy led by energy storage.

Industry experts point out that Grenergy's large investment indicates that the Latin American solar energy storage market is entering a period of rapid development. With the superior natural conditions and policy support of countries such as Chile, Brazil, and Mexico, the cost of large capacity energy storage projects will continue to decline, and the 24/7 green power procurement model will become increasingly popular. High energy consuming enterprises represented by mining will become an important customer group for solar energy storage projects, promoting the transformation of the entire regional energy structure towards cleanliness and modernization. Editor/Yang Beihua