Brazil and Colombia, both considered success stories in the development of energy scenarios, were the first countries featured in the new “Long-Term Energy Scenarios (LTES)” series co-organised by the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), and GET.transform. The kick-off seminar took place on 3 February within the framework of ECLAC’s Technical Forum of Energy Planners (FOREPLEN) and garnered 230 participants from more than 100 institutions and 27 countries.
Thiago Barral, president of the Brazilian Energy Research Company (EPE), presented Brazil’s 2050 National Energy Plan, which was adopted by the Brazilian Ministry of Mines and Energy. The plan does not only have a long-term goal, but also includes in its analysis social and economic development issues under the implementation of decarbonisation policies. Emphasis was equally placed on the need for consensus and participation with businesses, citizens and consumers, as the contributions arising in these processes are fundamental to improving the National Energy Plan.
Sharing insights from Colombia, Mr. Christian Jaramillo, Director of the Energy Mining Planning Unit (UPME) of Colombia, emphasised the difference between action, development, prospective and projection plans. He recognised that the main challenge of energy planning is the governance of the planning process, which requires constant innovations to empower the community, consideration of environmental externalities as well as decentralisation to achieve a higher level of social autonomy at the territorial level. He also noted that the planning scope had to be expanded to include impacts on social, environmental, education, energy, transportation and economy aspects.
To take in all findings, watch the replay above in English or take in the Spanish version here and feel free to download the presentation.
The seminar series continues with country best practices in energy planning on 17 February with experiences from Costa Rica and Panama, followed by insights from Ecuador and Uruguay on 3 March.
