Peru Proposes Reviving a 1,000 MW Power Interconnection with Chile

Peru's Minister of Energy and Mines, Guillermo Shinno, proposed on October 21, 2026, to resume talks with Chile on interconnecting their power systems, with the option of a 500 kV, 1,000 MW line between the Montalvo substation in southern Peru and Kimal in northern Chile. The announcement came at the XXI meeting of the Chile-Peru Business Council, held in Lima.

The link would allow energy to flow in both directions and make use of a resource that is currently wasted. According to a 2025 study by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the project requires an estimated investment of 550 million dollars and would enable exchanges of between 3,600 and 5,700 GWh per year, with joint economic benefits of about 170 million dollars annually, pv magazine reported. Separately, Gestión reported on October 13 the same investment figure and the same exchange ranges, along with the timetable Shinno laid out for opening a formal dialogue with Chile's Minister of Energy, Ximena Rincón.

The logic rests on the complementarity of the two generation mixes. pv magazine notes that Chile concentrates extensive solar and wind capacity in its north, while Peru contributes hydroelectric and natural gas generation, useful during hours of low Chilean renewable output. For Chile, the line would offer a new outlet for its solar surplus: curtailment (cutting renewable generation for lack of transmission capacity) totaled 2,680 GWh between January and July 2026, according to the same publication.

Peru is adding solar capacity of its own. Solar generation reached 1,442 GWh in the first half of 2026, an 87% year-on-year increase according to Ministry of Energy and Mines data cited by pv magazine, with most installed capacity in Arequipa and Moquegua, near the border. In parallel, Chile's EnorChile Transmission submitted on October 13 to the Environmental Evaluation Service (SEA) the environmental impact study for a 22 km line, with an investment of 30 million dollars and capacity of up to 250 MVA, which would link Parinacota to the Peruvian border and include a converter station to handle the difference in frequency between the two grids.

Shinno framed the issue under Commitment 21 of the Santiago Action Plan and said in remarks to pv magazine that he hopes to meet with Rincón before November or, failing that, at the binational meeting on November 29. The 1,000 MW link has yet to receive a final investment decision or a construction schedule, and its progress depends on technical, regulatory and commercial agreements between the two countries.

This article was drafted with artificial intelligence assistance from verified sources and reviewed by a human editor before publication.