Latin American energy sector is highly sensitive to climate change

A study prepared by the Latin American Energy Organization (Olade) and presented this Tuesday warned that the region’s energy sector is highly sensitive to the effects of the climate change and highlighted the importance of increasing their resilience.

The report, in whose research the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (Aecid) and the Tecnalia Foundation collaborated, analyzed the vulnerability and risk of Latin America’s energy infrastructure in the face of various climate variables, from changes in temperature to extreme events. like storms and strong winds.

For example, the production of photovoltaic plants decreases by 0.66% if the temperature rises 1 degree Celsius compared to a threshold of 25 degrees Celsius.

For transmission lines, the energy transported drops by 0.4% if the temperature increases by one degree Celsius above a threshold of 20.

In hydroelectric plants, energy production falls by 1% if the flow that feeds them decreases to the same extent.

Regarding the transport of natural gas through gas pipelines, the increase in temperature can compromise the integrity of the pipelines, reduce transmission capacity and generate safety problems in the case of compression stations that are not suitable for high temperatures.

And for agroenergy (biofuel) farms, changes in temperature could affect the productivity of the feedstock and the corresponding energy production, depending on the type of crop.

The conclusions underline the importance of integrating climate risk assessment into the design and operation of energy facilities, Olade warned in a statement.

Thus, the study recommends proposed adaptation measures, such as the use of more heat-resistant technologies, land use management to reduce erosion, and the implementation of improved prediction systems for extreme climate events.

“For all these reasons, it is essential to prioritize climate resilience in energy policies,” determined the report.

“Investment must be made in more robust and flexible infrastructure, as well as in the diversification of energy sources to reduce dependence on resources susceptible to climatic fluctuations,” he added.

Given that Latin America’s energy matrix is ​​highly dependent on direct sources such as hydroelectric plants, the report highlighted the urgency of anticipating and mitigating climate risks to avoid possible energy crises and protect the sustainability and economic stability of the region in the coming decades.

This type of crisis has already been seen this year in several countries in the region that have had to schedule temporary blackouts to ration electricity due to the impossibility of supplying all their national demand, as has happened in Mexico, Costa Rica and Ecuador.

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