“I see great growth potential in Chile” – Interview with Rodrigo Ackermann

News | 30.8.2023

Rodrigo Ackermann heads our operations in Chile. When he came to visit our headquarters in Helsinki in August, we took the opportunity to sit down with him to learn what is new with renewable energy in Latin America.

How did Helsinki look and feel to you, especially in this unusually warm and sunny August weather?

I’ve been to Helsinki many times in the last few years, but it never ceases to amaze me how beautiful and clean the city is. Especially now, with the summer terraces open and taking up the sidewalks with cozy seating areas and nice flower arrangements, the city streets and parks make for an excellent spot to enjoy the Helsinki atmosphere. Another thing that has struck me is the friendliness of the people. Finns might not initiate many conversations with strangers, that part of the stereotypes is true, but when you do strike up a conversation with a Finn, you can expect to get a friendly response.

How did you end up working in the field of renewable energy?

I have worked for more than 30 years in the electricity sector, in different parts of Chile and Latin America. Chile has been a pioneer when it comes to renewable energy in Latin America, and being there to see the progress has been meaningful to me. From the beginning, my work has involved analyzing and participating in projects but it was in 2012 when I started actively developing distributed generation business with photovoltaic PMGDs*. Since then, renewable energy generation projects have been my main focus.

What are some current trends in renewables in Chile and Latin America?

The trends in different Latin American countries vary depending on the relative volume of renewables energies present in the energy generation matrix of each country. In Chile, where the presence of these type of technologies is very important, the trend is to promote the development of medium and large-scale energy storage systems.

How do you see the future of our industry?

I see that there is great growth potential, also in Chile, where we already have a significant volume of installed capacity. The replacement of technologies that consume non-renewable fuels is a priority for both Chile and Latin America as a whole, which boosts the growth of the renewable energy industry and, especially, the installation of large-scale batteries.

What do you think makes Korkia what it is?

First of all, we have a great team, experienced and highly invested in driving our projects. Secondly, our business model virtuously promotes the development of sustainable and profitable projects. The focus is not only on the development of renewable energy projects, but also on the projects being profitable for us and our investors. The incentives are very well aligned, which is an advantage over other players in the industry.

Chilean team members Rodrigo Ackermann, Martín de la Fuente, Rodrigo Orellana and Diego Leyto being photographed at Korkia’s Helsinki office for a local newspaper article.

*PMGD refers to Small Distributed Generation Means (in Spanish, Pequeños Medios de Generación Distribuida).