Bioenergy in an Agroforestry Economy under Crisis: Complement and Conflict. La Araucanía, Chile, 1990–2016

Abstract

Following the collapse of Chile’s energy mix in 2000, standalone bioenergy generation plants were installed in Lautaro, Region of La Araucanía, in 2011, purchasing biomass from the forest and agricultural industries. This article resorts to a historical method, using government sources—particularly projects submitted to the State’s environmental approval process; news reports; corporate information and documents; interviews with employees, entrepreneurs and experts; field visits; and general literature. This article focuses on the success case of a bioenergy generation company and its relationship with wood and agricultural biomass suppliers in a region where traditional farming and forest plantations are under crisis. Currently, two additional bioenergy projects are underway in the Region. Beyond the economic crisis that is currently affecting this Region, local communities have increasingly been opposing the new plants and the price of electric energy has dropped, leading to an uncertain future for bioenergy in the south of Chile.