Uruguay’s Remarkable Shift to Renewable Energy: A Blueprint for the World | Ramón Méndez Galain | TED #bigIdeas

Explore how Uruguay, once in the throes of an energy crisis, managed to transform its energy sector to be 98 percent reliant on renewable sources within a span of 15 years.

This transformation was spearheaded by the country’s former secretary of energy, Ramón Méndez Galain, who shares the strategies and benefits of this unprecedented shift.

Renewables are no longer just a solution for the climate crisis. Renewables allow us to build strong, reliable, robust power systems. They allow us to sharply reduce and stabilize the electricity costs, while at the same time having an important energy boost to our economies and job creation. – Ramón Méndez Galain

While each country’s transition to renewable energy will be unique, Uruguay’s success story provides a model that can be adapted and applied elsewhere.

The key elements of this model include flexibility, a new dispatch model, a new market model, and strong leadership.

Renewable energy is not just a climate crisis solution; it also allows for the construction of robust power systems, reduces and stabilizes electricity costs, and stimulates economic growth and job creation.

This underscores the multifaceted benefits of renewable energy.

In just five years, we went from a traditional hydrothermal power mix with up to 50 percent fossil share to an almost completely decarbonized one that already in 2017 was 98 percent renewable. – Ramón Méndez Galain

The success of Uruguay’s energy transition underscores the feasibility and urgency of shifting to renewable energy.

There is no need to wait for future decades; the transition needs to start now.

The transition to renewable energy has broader positive impacts on the economy, as seen in Uruguay where it attracted six billion dollars in investment and created 50,000 jobs, equivalent to three percent of the country’s labor force.

Strong leadership and political will were crucial in Uruguay’s energy transition.

This highlights the importance of committed leadership in driving large-scale changes.

The shift to renewable energy has significantly reduced the cost of electricity production in Uruguay, demonstrating the economic benefits of renewable energy.

The cost to produce electricity in Uruguay today is stable, demonstrating that renewable energies can stabilize energy prices and make them almost independent of the fluctuation of the prices of energy commodities.

Uruguay’s energy transition model can be applied globally.

It requires flexibility, a new dispatch model, a new market model, and strong leadership.

This shows that renewable energies are a viable solution for countries around the world.