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Colombia power system flexibility assessment

Colombia engaged with the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) to assess the flexibility of the electricity mix proposed in their latest national expansion plan which pointed to VRE penetration exceeding IRENA’s Renewable Energy Roadmaps (REmap) estimates.

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Colombia has engaged with the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) to assess the flexibility of the electricity mix proposed in national expansion plans. The latest plan has called for ambitious solar and wind penetration, even exceeding IRENA’s REmap (Renewable Energy Roadmap) estimates.

Colombia’s power system is characterised by a high share of hydropower and low VRE generation capacity. In 2030 the country expects to increase the VRE installed capacity up to 17%.

In this flexibility assessment IRENA, together with the National Mining and Energy Planning Unit (Unidad de Planeación Minero Energética – UPME), analyses whether the Colombian power system would be flexible enough in 2030 to cope with a high penetration of Variable Renewable Energy (VRE). Additionally, this brief shows if there could be cost efficient additional investments in Colombia beyond those identified in their national expansion plan and provides a sensitivity analysis to identify a pathway towards a 100% renewables scenario.

The analysis considers a division of Colombia in 15 nodes and allows the analysis of transmission. Based on the results, UPME plans to add a chapter on power system flexibility in the next national power expansion plan, looking at the period 2018-2032.

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Learn more about the IRENA FlexTool