Chile's National Energy Commission (CNE) has formally asked the National Electricity Coordinator to correct its 2027 budget proposal and five-year plan. The instruction is to keep the total around the budget approved for 2026, updated for projected inflation (CPI), to avoid significant increases in the public service charge paid by all end users, free and regulated, Electrominería reported on November 13, 2026.
The 2026 budget that serves as a ceiling is CLP 66,005 million, the net figure the CNE used to set the current public service charge, according to its Exempt Resolution No. 722 of 2025. The Coordinator has five business days from notification to submit the corrected version, and the law requires the CNE to approve the budget and set the new charge before November 19.
View the data as a table
| Net 2026 budget | $66,005 million |
| Base public service charge | $0.855/kWh |
| Coordinator's deadline | 5 business days |
| Technical meetings in October | 4 |
What the CNE wants in the Coordinator's 2027 budget
The letter follows four technical meetings the two institutions held in October to review payroll, purchases of goods and services and the investment project portfolio. For each item, the CNE issued mandatory instructions:
- Payroll and staff: review the proposed headcount and exclude hires not justified by critical functions or by the new requirements of Supreme Decree No. 32 of 2026, which changed the storage, generation-consumption and dispatch regulations and the technical standard for security. Any staff increase must rest on a workload analysis and give priority to internal reassignment.
- Item 22, goods and services: review every line and apply concrete efficiency measures to cut or reschedule spending.
- Item 24, projects: prioritize the portfolio and separate what is essential for operational continuity, critical infrastructure, system security or regulatory compliance from what can be safely postponed.
The CNE did not publish the amount the Coordinator had proposed for 2027 or how much it should cut. For 2026, the operator had requested CLP 65,749 million, plus a CLP 4,849 million provision, a 10.3% real increase over the approved 2025 budget, partly to fund measures adopted after the February 25 blackout, according to Diario Financiero.
How much the grid coordinator costs and who pays
Since 2018, the budgets of the Coordinator, the Panel of Experts and the transmission corridor studies have been funded through the public service charge, which appears on every electricity bill in Chile. The CNE calculates it by dividing those budgets by the energy expected to be billed: for 2026 it projected 80,133,390 MWh, of which 79.4 million correspond to the National Electricity System and 0.68 million to the medium-sized systems.
| 2026 item | Amount | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Coordinator's net budget | CLP 66,005,407,528 | Net of CLP 538 million surplus from 2025 |
| Panel of Experts' net budget | CLP 2,546,876,925 | Net of CLP 343 million cash balance |
| Corridor studies | CLP 0 | No additional amounts |
| Projected billed energy | 80,133,390 MWh | National system + medium-sized systems |
| Base public service charge | CLP 0.855 per kWh | In force since December 1, 2025 |
Source: CNE, Exempt Resolution No. 722 of 2025, which sets the public service charge from December 1, 2025.
For a household using 200 kWh a month, the base charge adds up to about CLP 171 a month (Energía Futura calculation). Above 350 kWh a component for the Tariff Stabilization Fund created by Law 21,472 is added, raising the charge to up to CLP 4.084 per kWh for consumption above 5,000 kWh. That component does not fund the Coordinator but the fund that cushions regulated tariff increases.
How the Coordinator's budget has grown
The operator's spending has risen since it was created in 2017. According to the Coordinator's own figures cited by Acenor, its spending budget went from CLP 40,211 million in 2018 to CLP 41,143 million in 2022 and CLP 57,246 million in 2025, the highest up to that year. The Coordinator attributes this to the system's growth: it went from 373 coordinated companies in 2017 to 833 in 2025, and it manages transfers between companies of about US$2 billion a year.
The public service charge also has collection problems: some companies do not pass it on in time, as we reported in the story on five companies owing CLP 167 million of the charge.
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See advertising optionsTougher performance indicators for the Coordinator
The letter also changes the operator's performance indicators (KPI-CNE), after reviewing its performance over the last five years and an external audit by BDO Auditores y Consultores. Meeting these indicators weighs on the evaluation of the Coordinator's board.
| Indicator | Before | Now |
|---|---|---|
| KPI-CNE 10, technical information: compliance target | 92.5% | 93.5% |
| KPI-CNE 15, availability of critical platforms: target for 100% | 99.0% | 99.5% |
| KPI-CNE 15: lower band (below it, score 0%) | 95.0% | 97.0% |
Source: CNE letter to the Coordinator, via Electrominería (November 13, 2026).
The austerity signal comes as Congress debates the Ministry of Energy's 2027 budget, which includes a cut, and as the Coordinator's role is reviewed after the 2025 blackout. This week the operator also ordered a group of small plants to limit their output after a fault, as we explained in our story on the 15% cap on PMGD plants.
- JulyPreliminary projectionThe Coordinator sends its spending estimate to the CNE.
- OctoberFour technical meetingsReview of payroll, goods and services and projects.
- 13 NovCNE official letterBudget around 2026 plus inflation and tougher KPIs.
- +5 business daysCorrected proposalThe Coordinator submits its itemized budget.
- Before 19 NovApproval and new chargeThe CNE approves the budget and sets the public service charge, effective 1 December.
If the CNE approves a 2027 budget equal to 2026 plus inflation and energy demand keeps growing, the base charge per kWh could stay the same or even fall slightly, because the same real amount is spread over more kWh (Energía Futura's reasoning based on the formula in Resolution 722). The final value will be known with the resolution setting the charge before November 19.
The Coordinator's decisions also go through the courts and the Panel of Experts, the other body funded by this charge, with a net budget of CLP 2,547 million in 2026. A recent example is the fine over a transmission tender that the Supreme Court overturned.
Frequently asked questions
What did the CNE ask the Coordinator to do?
To correct its 2027 budget proposal to around the amount approved for 2026 (CLP 66,005 million) plus projected inflation, and to review staffing, spending and projects.
Who pays for the Coordinator's budget?
Every electricity customer, through the public service charge on the bill. In 2026 the base charge is CLP 0.855 per kWh.
How much does a household pay for this charge?
A household using 200 kWh a month pays about CLP 171 a month for the base charge. Above 350 kWh, the Tariff Stabilization Fund component is added.
When will the final budget be known?
The CNE must approve it and set the new public service charge before November 19, 2026; the new charge takes effect on December 1.
