The opening of the inaugural session was attended by the Vice Minister of Electricity of the Ministry of Energy and Mines of Peru, Patricia Elliot; the Minister of Energy and Mines of the Dominican Republic and incoming President of the XLIX Meeting of Ministers of OLACDE, Antonio Isa Conde; the General Secretary of the Andean Community, Jorge Hernando Pedraza and the Executive Secretary of OLACDE, Alfonso Blanco.
The Vice Minister of Electricity of the Ministry of Energy and Mines of Peru, highlighted the role of renewable energies and the role that gas will have in the transition to what she added “we highlight the role of natural gas and its incorporation into the regional energy matrix as a transition fuel to less polluting sources.”
As part of the agenda of the Meeting of Ministers, the Vice Minister of Electricity of Peru delivered the Presidency of the meeting to the Dominican Republic, a country represented by the Minister of Energy and Mines, Antonio Isa Conde.
“There is a commitment to deplete a rather ambitious agenda, among which I highlight the strong support for OLACDE’s initiative in trying to accelerate the energy transition of the region, by promoting the integration of renewables.
Improving energy planning systems through the process of strengthening and harmonizing energy information systems, using tools that allow an important leap in the improvement of economic systems, ”said Antonio Isa Conde, Minister of Energy and Mines of the Dominican Republic.
He also reported that his country reached 97% of electricity coverage in recent years, however, warned that access to energy should be a priority for the region, adding that “the development of our countries requires that all inhabitants have access to full and sustainable energy, no matter how remote the communities are. This is one of the priority objectives of this institution. ”
For his part, Jorge Hernando Pedraza, Secretary General of the Andean Community, special guest for the meeting of Ministers, agreed with the Minister of Energy of the Dominican Republic on the substance of improving the quality of life of citizens and for which energy exchange between countries becomes necessary, he stressed.
The closing of the inaugural session of the XLIX Meeting of Ministers, was carried out by OLACDE’s Executive Secretary, Alfonso Blanco, who said “we have to continue leading this transition process and increasing the incorporation of renewable energies through active policies that encourage and promote the decarbonization of our economies. ”
On that, he stressed the importance of discussing which is the road to travel that is applicable to the region. This, without neglecting that in order to decarbonize the Latin American economies, fossil fuels will be present.
“This vision of the energy transition is something that we are discussing in this area and we are developing in some way common strategies for our region, addressing the restrictions and capacities that our region has in this regard,” said OLACDE Executive Secretary Alfonso Blanco.
Ministerial Dialogue
As usual at the Meeting of Ministers, the Ministerial Dialogue was held where the Head of the Energy Division of the Inter-American Development Bank, Ariel Yépez, presented the challenges of the energy sector in Latin America and the role of innovation in the attention of those challenges. Paul Simons, Executive Director of the International Agency, presented his global energy forecast to 2040.
Energy Efficiency Seminar
The Energy Efficiency Seminar culminated today with the session on electric motors and energy efficient transformers, with the participation of: Steve Kukoda, Executive Director of the International Copper Association; César Songia of ABB Motores, Benoît Lebot of IPEEC and as moderator, Paul Kellett, Global Manager of U4E, UN Environment.
