Copec Flux, the solar energy subsidiary of Chilean fuel company Copec, and shopping centre operator Vivo SpA have opened a 663-panel solar plant at the Vivo Outlet Chillán, in Chile's Ñuble Region. It will generate about 600 MWh a year, the average consumption of about 250 homes in Chillán, and avoid 183 tonnes of CO₂ a year, the companies said in a story published by Revista Electricidad on 21 October.
It is a self-consumption project: the energy is produced on the roof and grounds of the shopping centre itself and used on site, for lighting, air conditioning and shops. The companies compare the avoided emissions to planting about 5,760 trees.
The Chillán solar plant in figures
| Item | Figure |
|---|---|
| Solar panels | 663 |
| Estimated generation | 600 MWh a year |
| Equivalent to the consumption of | About 250 homes in Chillán |
| Avoided emissions | 183 tonnes of CO₂ a year |
| Equivalent in trees | About 5,760 |
| Generation per panel (own calculation) | About 905 kWh a year |
Source: Copec Flux and Vivo SpA, via Revista Electricidad. Generation per panel is an Energía Futura calculation (600 MWh divided by 663 panels). The companies did not report the plant's capacity in kWp.
The numbers match the consumption of a Chilean home: 600 MWh shared among 250 homes is 2,400 kWh a year per home, or 200 kWh a month, close to the national average we calculated in our story on how much electricity a home in Chile uses.
Why shopping centres install solar panels
A shopping centre has two advantages for solar energy: large roofs and car parks and consumption concentrated during the day, when the panels generate. Almost all the energy is used at the moment it is produced, without batteries, cutting electricity purchases from the grid during the busiest hours.
Vivo SpA's general manager, Rodrigo de Diego, said the project “is a contribution to the sector's decarbonisation”. Since 2025 Vivo has also had a contract with Copec Emoac to supply 100% renewable energy to all its malls and outlets and most of its strip centres. The company said it will analyse consumption per square metre at each site to size new plants without oversizing them.
The Chillán building has other efficiency measures: open spaces with natural ventilation, a highly insulated envelope and LED lighting with central control. Copec Flux's general manager, Juan Cristóbal González, said the company wants to “keep promoting initiatives that support companies in their energy transition”.
Solar energy in Ñuble and self-consumption in Chile
Ñuble is a region in the middle of a renewable expansion: it has about 1,000 MW of approved projects and some US$1.6 billion in investment, as we reported in our story on Ñuble's renewable projects. Solar radiation in the central valley lets panels produce well in spring and summer, though less than in the north.
Across the country, self-consumption is growing. Installations registered under Chile's distributed generation scheme (net billing) totalled 502.9 MW and 41,986 installations as of 31 May 2026, according to the Chilean Solar Energy Association (Acesol) report based on SEC data cited by pv magazine. Between January and May, 56.1 MW were added.
| Region | Net billing capacity (31 May 2026) |
|---|---|
| Metropolitan | 146.3 MW |
| Valparaíso | 74.7 MW |
| Maule | 60.4 MW |
| O'Higgins | 60.0 MW |
| Country total | 502.9 MW (41,986 installations) |
Source: Acesol based on SEC data, via pv magazine. The vast majority are systems of up to 10 kW: 38,187 installations.
Copec Flux and Copec's solar bet
The Chillán project is part of a broader group strategy. In July Copec bought the 87 MWp La Huella photovoltaic park in La Higuera (Coquimbo), bringing its own solar assets to about 355 MWp, according to the company. Earlier it acquired the 123 MWp Granja Solar in Pozo Almonte, where it developed with Transelec a 105 MW / 420 MWh battery system.
For a company or household considering its own plant, savings depend on the tariff: the more expensive the kWh, the sooner the investment pays off. Prices by municipality are in our guide to the price of a kWh in Chile.
What the energy from a solar plant like Chillán's is worth
The companies did not disclose the investment or the expected savings. For reference, 600 MWh a year would be worth about CLP 153 million if paid at CGE's BT1 residential tariff for October 2026 (CLP 255.27 per kWh). A shopping centre pays other tariffs, with demand charges and different per-kWh prices, so its real savings may be higher or lower, but the calculation gives an idea of the size of the energy at stake.
The savings from a self-consumption plant depend on three things: how much of the generated energy is used at the same moment, how much the kWh no longer bought costs and what is received for surplus fed into the grid. At a site with high daytime consumption, such as a mall, almost all production is used immediately, which improves returns compared with a home, where much of the generation happens when nobody is in.
For households, Chile's distributed generation law allows surplus to be fed into the grid and deducted from the bill. Systems of up to 10 kW, mostly residential, account for 38,187 of the nearly 42,000 installations registered in the country.
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See advertising optionsFrequently asked questions
How much will the Vivo Outlet Chillán solar plant generate?
About 600 MWh a year, with 663 panels, according to Copec Flux and Vivo.
How many homes is that equivalent to?
The average consumption of about 250 homes in Chillán, about 200 kWh a month per home.
How much CO₂ will it avoid?
About 183 tonnes a year, the equivalent of planting about 5,760 trees, according to the companies.
How much net billing solar is there in Chile?
502.9 MW in 41,986 installations as of 31 May 2026, according to Acesol based on SEC data.
