The first stage involves installing stand-alone photovoltaic systems designed for self-consumption, enabling households to generate electricity on-site without dependence on transmission infrastructure. Grenergy will fund both the pilot installations and a technical assessment to establish operational, territorial and financial requirements for potential expansion. No household count has been disclosed, as the scope of future phases depends entirely on results from the diagnostic work and the public-private financing model that emerges from the study. Chile’s Sustainability Energy Agency will participate in later stages alongside the Ministry of Energy and regional public entities.
The initiative reflects Antofagasta’s position as a strategic renewable energy hub. Separately, Gonvarri Solar Steel announced it will supply TracSmarT+1P single-axis trackers for a 389 MWp photovoltaic project under construction in the Atacama Desert within the same region. Installation work began in 2026 and will continue through the first half of 2027. The project integrates battery energy storage, a configuration increasingly adopted across Chile and Latin America to manage intermittency and improve grid integration. Gonvarri’s Chilean footprint now approaches three gigawatts of installed tracker capacity, reinforcing its market share in the country’s large-scale solar segment.
The battery-coupled design aligns with the company’s recent certification for hybrid solar-plus-BESS applications in both AC and DC configurations, positioning its technology for the growing hybrid segment. Gonvarri maintains commercial, technical and maintenance operations in Chile, serving as a regional hub for projects across the Southern Cone and Peru. The dual developments underscore Antofagasta’s dual role as a testing ground for off-grid rural electrification and a major deployment zone for utility-scale renewable infrastructure.
This article was curated and published as part of our South American energy market coverage.
