AS/COA Report Suggests Roadmap for Pacific Alliance Energy Integration
AS/COA Report Suggests Roadmap for Pacific Alliance Energy Integration
Creating a ministerial-level working group, sharing best practices, and harmonizing regulations are among recommendations to gain energy-sector competitiveness.
New York, February 12, 2015—The Pacific Alliance countries—Chile, Colombia, Mexico, and Peru—should deepen energy integration by jointly working to overcome political and regulatory challenges that prevent the creation of larger domestic markets and hamper investment, says a new report by Americas Society/Council of the Americas’ Energy Action Group (EAG). The report An Energy Agenda for the Pacific Alliance asserts that by taking advantage of geographic proximity as well as economic and political affinity, member countries can achieve mutual objectives in conventional energy, power generation, and renewables.
Together, the four Pacific Alliance members account for 35 percent of Latin America’s GDP and 55 percent of the region’s exports. With over 30 observer countries, the Alliance has attracted global attention and several other Latin American countries have expressed an interest in joining. But in spite of a shared commitment to open markets, private investment, and rule of law, energy cooperation proves elusive. This EAG paper addresses the root causes of the problem and introduces a Pacific Alliance energy agenda with specific recommendations to increase connectivity, boost competitiveness, and ultimately improve the lives of the 204 million people in the economic group’s combined population.
The recommendations contained in the report include the establishment of a working group of ministries of energy to promote investment and development, the creation of a financial institution mirroring the North American Development Bank behind some of NAFTA’s infrastructure projects, and the harmonization of regulations essential to facilitate cross-border integration.
"The Pacific Alliance countries should promote energy opportunities jointly," says COA's Director of Energy, Christian Gómez Jr. “Energy infrastructure is a vital piece of cooperation and investments in pipelines, transmission lines, and smart grids should be a priority."
View the full report here.
Access other AS/COA Energy Action Group reports here.
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AS/COA’s Energy Action Group (EAG) brings together the public and private sectors to develop strategic energy policies for the Americas. The EAG hosts forums in cities across the Americas and publishes working papers and recommendations on key energy and climate topics.
