A 25x jump in battery output sounds big. But compared to the system’s needs, it’s just a first step.
Source: Own analysis based on data from the Coordinador Eléctrico Nacional (as of April 13, 2025)
In recent years, battery energy storage systems (BESS) have moved from niche pilots into early commercial deployment in Chile’s national grid. According to data from the Coordinador Eléctrico Nacional, 24 BESS projects are now operational, and their contribution is starting to ramp up.
Annual energy injected by BESS:
2023: 21.1 GWh
2024: 524.9 GWh
2025 (Jan–Apr): 374.7 GWh
(compared to just 31.7 GWh in the same period of 2024)
That means:
From 2023 to 2024, annual BESS injection increased by 25x.
In just the first four months of 2025, BESS injected over 11x more energy than in the same period last year.
Still, there’s a long way to go. In 2024, total energy injected by BESS represented only 8% of the renewable curtailment recorded that year — a clear sign that while progress is underway, Chile’s BESS capacity is still far from keeping up with the system’s renewable oversupply.
More than scale, the role of BESS is about timing: they enable clean energy to be stored and injected during hours of low renewable output, especially at night — displacing fossil generation and stabilizing the grid without increasing emissions.
Meanwhile, the deployment pipeline continues to grow. Over 10 large-scale BESS projects are expected to enter service in 2025–2026, adding hundreds of megawatts in flexible capacity. If implemented swiftly, this pipeline could materially reduce curtailment and make renewable energy dispatchable on demand.
At Sherpas, we’re following this trend closely to link these systems to bilateral carbon crediting mechanisms, unlocking climate finance for acceleration. With thermal phase-outs like Ventanas facing delays [read more], this transition can’t be left to chance.
The tech is proven. Projects are maturing. But BESS won’t scale on their own. When policy, financing, and system needs align — that's when storage can actually shift the curve on curtailment, and move the needle on decarbonization.
