Chile Green Tax on Coal Increases Cheap Shale Gas Gamble
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Chile is gambling on overcoming a looming energy crisis in the biggest copper-producing country by generating more power with U.S. shale gas, just as prices of the fuel are rising.
President Michelle Bachelet will unveil an energy plan on May 15 that will rely on liquefied natural gas to ease the cost of Chilean power, the most expensive in Latin America. A $5-a-metric-ton carbon emissions tax proposed in March will punish coal-fired power and encourage gas-fired stations that today are a fifth more expensive, according to AES Gener SA, the country’s second-biggest power provider.