• Technological shifts in power generation, evolving consumer expectations, and climate variability are driving the need for resilient and secure electricity transmission systems.
• To support countries in this agenda, the IDB has launched the Power Transmission Acceleration Platform.
• The platform aims to support the modernization of regulatory, technological, financing, and regional integration frameworks to drive strategic investments.
For years, the energy debate in Latin America and the Caribbean was shaped by a simple idea: strengthening the power system meant expanding generation. The region rose to this challenge, demonstrating its ability to diversify its energy mix and develop new sources of power.
Today, the challenge is different, and likely more complex: designing power systems capable of operating safely and resiliently in a technological and climate environment that is evolving faster than the infrastructure itself.
In this context, transmission must take center stage in discussions about the future of power systems, an agenda that the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) is advancing in close collaboration with countries across Latin America and the Caribbean.
Transmission at the Center of Energy Security
In 2024, the region was unable to utilize nearly 53 TWh of wind and solar energy due to transmission constraints, among other factors. According to data from the Latin American Energy Organization (OLADE for its initials in Spanish), this resulted in estimated losses of around $7 billion.
The strain on power systems is evident. Climate variability is altering historical operating patterns. New technologies are transforming how electricity is generated and consumed. Demand is becoming more dynamic. At the same time, society expects increasingly higher levels of reliability.
Transmission is no longer just a technical matter reserved for specialists, it has become a strategic public policy issue, closely tied to energy security and competitiveness. It is from this perspective that the Power Transmission Acceleration Platform (PTAP) emerged, an initiative launched by the IDB at COP30.
The Bottleneck is not Only Financial
The numbers are clear. The region should invest between $6 billion and $8 billion annually in transmission, while today it invests around $3 billion. But reducing the discussion to a financial gap would be a superficial interpretation.
The analysis presented in our report Unlocking the Grid shows something more structural: the planning and regulatory frameworks under which much of the region operates were designed for relatively stable systems where expansion followed predictable patterns. That context no longer exists. Uncertainty, technological diversification, and the need for operational resilience are redefining the rules of the game.
The consequences are visible, and the data, such as the OLACDE figure mentioned earlier, reflect bottlenecks present in several countries.
As renewable energy integration progresses without parallel development of transmission and flexibility mechanisms, the situation may worsen, leading not only to curtailment and associated economic losses, but also to lower reliability and energy security.
This does not reflect only a lack of infrastructure. It reflects a mismatch between planning, regulatory incentives, permitting processes, innovation, and financing mechanisms. At the same time, fiscal constraints highlight the need to attract diverse investment sources beyond public funding. If we do not adjust planning, regulation, and investment frameworks to these new conditions, the disconnect will deepen. If the challenge is systemic, the response must be systemic as well.
PTAP: A New Platform to Support Modernization of the Power Systems as a Whole
PTAP is based on a simple premise: strengthening transmission is not only about building more infrastructure but also modernizing the entire enabling environment that allows that infrastructure to be installed, upgraded, and operate as part of a system. The platform focuses on five dimensions that are deeply interconnected and described in our report.
1. Support planning and regulatory frameworks that incorporate resilience, risk management, and technological flexibility from the earliest stages. Transmission requires long horizons and clear signals; without these, investment becomes slow or uncertain.
2. Improve enabling conditions for transmission development, including permitting and approval processes that are often lengthy and unpredictable today. Reducing timeframes and increasing clarity in these processes is key to closing the gap between planning and implementation.
3. Prepare projects capable of mobilizing capital. There is growing interest in power transmission infrastructure, but many times there is a shortage of mature projects structured according to international standards. PTAP precisely seeks to close this gap between technical need and financial viability. This includes attracting concessional financing for transmission investment, when possible.
4. Accelerate the incorporation of innovation. Transmission modernization does not depend solely on new lines, technologies such as storage, digitalization, advanced conductors, and other operational solutions can increase capacity and improve resilience by making better use of existing infrastructure.
5. Strengthen the regional dimension. Energy security in Latin America and the Caribbean is not built country by country in isolation. That is why PTAP bets on shared learning and cooperation as tools to accelerate results.
A Shift in the Global Conversation
The launch of PTAP reflects something that is becoming evident at an international level: the energy discussion is shifting from installed capacity to the system’s ability to adapt to change. Solar and wind energy are already cost-competitive in most systems, but low generation cost does not necessarily translate into lower prices for users without a systemic vision.
Transmission systems are becoming strategic infrastructure. They are what allow the integration of new technologies, reduce vulnerabilities, and respond to increasingly demanding climate scenarios. In other words, they determine whether a system can evolve and diversify without compromising energy security.
Latin America and the Caribbean has a unique opportunity in this new scenario. The region combines historical experience in integrating diverse resources, a relatively clean energy matrix, and increasing regional coordination.
PTAP seeks to transform these advantages into a concrete modernization agenda, which includes technical assistance and financing for investment pilots thanks to an initial contribution of 15 million euros from the German government.
The region is already advancing in an important part of the work: diversifying its power matrix. The challenge now is to ensure that the whole system can evolve at the same pace as its environment.
This means stopping viewing transmission as secondary infrastructure. Transmission systems are the space where technological innovation, investment, and energy security converge. Accelerating investment in transmission does not simply mean building more lines; it means updating the way we plan, regulate, and operate the power system.
PTAP is a bet on this evolution. Because ultimately, the strength of future power systems will not depend only on how much energy they can produce, but on their ability to adapt to change without losing stability.