Uruguay has already begun working on building a new long-term political consensus to define its energy future. The process is currently in the diagnostic and technical coordination stage, with the participation of public agencies, companies, sector stakeholders, and representatives from various political parties.
“The current situation is that the government is working on a consultancy to bring together diagnoses in preparation for an energy policy for 2050, and this is being carried out by the Bariloche Foundation,” says Diego Oroño , president of the Uruguayan Renewable Energy Association (AUDER).
“We were invited as AUDER to participate in it; all public, private and political party actors participate,” he noted during the streaming of Fuera de Registro , by Mobility Portal , a media outlet that is part of the same editorial group as Energía Estratégica.
The official intention is that this technical process will lead to a parliamentary discussion that will allow the recovery of the state policy logic that characterized the historic Multiparty Energy Agreement 2030.
The precedent is significant. The agreement reached in 2010 during José Mujica's presidency marked the starting point of Uruguay's energy transformation and allowed for the mobilization of more than USD 8 billion in public-private investments , with a scheme in which the State assumed the role of coordinator and administrator of auctions.
Now, the challenge is different. Uruguay has already consolidated a highly renewable electricity matrix, so the new discussion aims to address the next vectors of growth: energy efficiency, electrification of new consumption, regional integration, and new technologies.
According to the context defined by the Government itself, the new energy policy will have among its main axes the strengthening of clean sources and the development of electrical cooperation mechanisms with neighboring countries, including pilot projects to validate innovative solutions.
Although the main question revolves around the political scenario, those in the renewable energy sector perceive room for building consensus.
“We know that political contests and conversations at the political level are a bit more heated than perhaps 15 years ago when the previous multi-party agreement was made. But every time we talk to someone, everyone agrees that it has to be done and that it is a fundamental asset for the country,” Oroño concluded.
If the technical process manages to consolidate into a concrete political proposal, Uruguay could once again establish a long-term roadmap at a time when regulatory predictability is once again crucial for attracting investments in the energy transition.