What is the heating and cooling sector in Paraguay?

The heating and cooling sector in Paraguay, including at the domestic, commercial and industrial10 levels, is dominated by biomass, mostly firewood, wood chips and charcoal.11 Despite biomass accounting for about half of primary energy consumption in Paraguay12, development has happened mostly on a commercial and least-cost-option basis.

What is Paraguay's energy policy?

Policy In November 2014 Paraguay launched a process to design the National Energy Policy. The process, which is expected to last until November 2015, will define Paraguay’s energy mix in the short, medium and long-term (25 years) and considers electricity, oil, gas and “all alternative energies”.

What fuel does Paraguay use?

Biomass, specifically firewood, is the largest fuel source consumed in Paraguay at 43% of final energy demand. Only 17% of fuel wood demand is met by wood from managed forests. The country continues to remove forest at one of the highest rates in all of South America at around 325,000 hectares per year, mostly in the Western Chaco region.

Who has the monopoly for electricity in Paraguay?

The national public utility (ANDE) had the monopoly for electricity in Paraguay (Law 966/64) until 2006, when Law 3009/06 on independent producers allowed for independent generation and transport of electricity for national consumption or export. This included generators from renewable energy resources except from hydropower plants larger than 2MW.

What is the main source of electricity in Paraguay?

Hydropower is the main source of Paraguay’s electricity generation and one of its main exports.

Should Paraguay adopt a back-casting approach?

Finally, the Government of Paraguay should adopt a back-casting approach, starting from the end goal—a zero-car-bon energy system as of 2050 at the latest—and work backwards to understand what needs to be done in the short and mid-term. This approach does not imply that policies will stay unchanged and fixed for decades.