Haberler

Request for EOI technical assistance for geothermal development in Chile

Mariposa, well 03, Chile (source: Alterra Power)
Alexander Richter 16 Eyl 2015

The World Bank Group has published a "Selection for Consultants by the World Bank Group Request for Expressions of Interest" for "Technical Assistance for Sustainable Geothermal Development in Chile".

The World Bank Group has published a “Selection for Consultants by the World Bank Group Request for Expressions of Interest” for “Technical Assistance for Sustainable Geothermal Development in Chile”.

Electronic Submissions through World Bank Group eConsultants:  https://wbgeconsult2.worldbank.org/wbgec/index.html

Deadline September 21, 2015 – 11:59:59 PM (Eastern Time – Washington D.C.)

Assignment Title: 1193738 – TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE FOR GEOTHERMAL DEVELOPMENT IN CHILE

Context of the Assignment

The Government of Chile (GoC) is intensifying its efforts to address critical challenges of the Country in the Power Sector. In this context, the GoC recognizes that it is important to develop geothermal as a viable alternative energy option to meet both the countrys NCRE targets and its long-term development needs. Since most renewables are intermittent, supplying stable base load power is key and the GoCs Energy Agenda already includes reforms specific to promoting geothermal development.

A catalytic effort to kick-start the sector could lead to a more robust outcome over time, exploiting the countrys significant geothermal potential. In order to achieve such an outcome, it will be essential to successfully implement the proposed GoC reform agenda for geothermal as well as to address other key barriers to sector development. To this end, the GoC has sought international assistance from its development partners. The GoC has secured US$ 53 million from the Clean Technology Fund (CTF), which is being channeled through the World Bank and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) to advance geothermal development in the country. The GoC is seeking to benefit from the World Banks extensive global experience in supporting geothermal development to help Chile implement a complementary set of market and regulatory reforms in parallel that would progressively address the key barriers to sector development, in order to progressively enhance market conditions to support the sustainable development of geothermal in the longer-term.

Assignment Description

Based on the performance of the drilling activities in the few fields that have been explored, there is evidence that geothermal development can face significant logistical challenges and high financial costs. The location of most geothermal projects in the high cordillera implies dealing with complex logistics in very remote sites, and rugged terrain and harsh climatic conditions often result in limited seasonal operational timeframes. In addition, most of the equipment and services required for geothermal drilling are at present unavailable domestically in Chile and need to be imported and adapted to specific local conditions, national regulations and commercial requirements. Another factor that poses challenges for geothermal development is the relatively small size of the market. At present, even the limited funding that has flowed is primarily focused on power generation, and there is scant efforts to expand markets to other direct uses for geothermal, which can improve the economies of scale for drilling operations. Many existing developers have indicated that expanding the market where they could do year around drilling at a larger scale would help reduce the overall cost of geothermal drilling operations. This would enhance the competitiveness of geothermal and enhance project viability.

The objective of this assignment is to analyze and identify existing industries and service providers in Chile that could contribute domestically to the geothermal sector. The evaluation will be addressed towards the identification and assessment of key elements and actions needed to be articulated and stimulated to provoke the transformation/adaptation of the domestic industrial capacity to support the geothermal industry. Promoting domestic industries to provide specific services and goods required by the geothermal sector could contribute to facilitate the development and bring down cost of geothermal projects over the long-term. This benefit may be of especial relevance at early exploration phases, given the high impact of drilling on project costs when resource availability risk is still very high. The analysis will identify the main cost drivers for the geothermal industry in Chile in comparison with other countries having a significantly developed geothermal sector, as are the USA, Mexico and New Zealand.

In particular the analysis will focus on elements that could promote the creation of a national drilling industry for geothermal purposes or associated industrial sectors, such as steel or turbine manufacturers, that could adapt their products to meet the specific needs of the geothermal industry. Once industries are identified, the assessment will include an evaluation of the technical necessities and commercial incentives that could be put in place to direct the industries towards contributing to the geothermal industry with domestic products, and how to better coordinate ancillary service companies.

Funding Source

The World Bank intends to finance the assignment / services described below under the following trust fund(s):

  • ESMAP – CL Technical Assistance for Sustainable Geothermal Development in Chile
  • Bank budget

Individual/ Firm Profile

The consultant will be a firm.

Submission Requirements

The World Bank now invites eligible firms to indicate their interest in providing the services. Interested firms must provide information indicating that they are qualified to perform the services (brochures, description of similar assignments, experience in similar conditions, availability of appropriate skills among staff, etc. for firms;CV and cover letter for individuals). Please note that the total size of all attachments should be less than 5MB. Consultants may associate to enhance their qualifications.

Interested firms are hereby invited to submit expressions of interest.
Expressions of Interest should be no more than 25 pages and should be submitted, in English, electronically through

World Bank Group eTendering (https://wbgeconsult2.worldbank.org/wbgec/index.html)

Notes

Following this invitation for Expression of Interest, a shortlist of qualified firms will be formally invited to submit proposals. Shortlisting and selection will be subject to the availability of funding.

Qualification Criteria

  1. Provide information showing that they are qualified in the field of the assignment.
  2. Provide information on the technical and managerial capabilities of the firm.
  3. Provide information on their core business and years in business.
  4. Provide information on the qualifications of key staff.

Source: World Bank