Chile's Energy Efficiency Law 21.305: What Plants Must Do

Chile's Energy Efficiency Law (Law 21.305) requires large companies to report their energy consumption every year and, if the Ministry of Energy designates them as energy-management-capable consumers (consumidores con capacidad de gestión de energía, CCGE), to implement an energy management system covering at least 80 % of their consumption. For an industrial plant, meeting that obligation starts with knowing how much each process consumes, not just what the bill says.

This guide summarizes the law from the plant's point of view. It is not legal advice: the criteria change every four years, and each company should confirm its situation with the Ministry of Energy.

Who has to report? #

There are two routes:

• By size. A decree sets the criteria every four years. Decree 163 of 2021 included companies with annual sales above 1,000,000 UF (Unidades de Fomento, Chile's inflation-indexed unit of account) and 200 or more employees. For the next cycle, the Ministry's December 2025 report proposed lowering the threshold to 600,000 UF, keeping the 200 employees.
• By consumption. Every company that consumed 50 teracalories or more in the previous year must report, whether or not it meets the size criteria. 50 Tcal is roughly 58 GWh.

Reporting is annual, covers consumption in the previous calendar year, and includes consumption by energy use and energy intensity: energy consumed over sales.

What is an energy-management-capable consumer (CCGE)? #

Based on the reports, the Ministry publishes each year, by resolution, the list of companies designated as CCGE. Those companies must:

1. Implement one or more energy management systems covering at least 80 % of their total consumption.
2. Report every year to the Ministry and to the Superintendency of Electricity and Fuels (SEC) the savings opportunities identified, the measures taken and those planned.

Are there fines? #

Yes. In February 2026, Chile's Supreme Court upheld a fine of 500 UTM (Unidades Tributarias Mensuales, a monthly tax unit) that the SEC imposed on a company for failing to report its 2022 and 2023 consumption to the National Energy Balance. The company argued that it consumed little; the court replied that it had the reporting obligation anyway. The most common risk is not consuming a lot, but not reporting.

What is an energy management system in practice? #

It is an orderly way to measure, analyze and improve consumption, with owners and targets. The most widely used reference is the ISO 50001 standard. Its pieces are:

• a baseline: how much is consumed today and on what;
• significant energy uses: the few processes that account for most of the consumption, such as refrigeration, compressed air, ovens or large motors;
• indicators that relate energy to production, such as kWh per ton or per unit;
• an action plan and its follow-up.

The role that coordinates it is usually called the energy manager, and it can be internal or external.

What do you need to measure? #

The bill tells you how much the whole plant consumed in the month. A management system needs to know how much each significant use consumed and when, and that requires metering per panel or per machine:

Measurement	Answers
Monthly bill	How much was paid
Main meter with hourly logging	At what time energy is consumed and how much during peak hours
Meters per panel	Which process explains the consumption
Energy cross-referenced with production	How much energy each unit produced costs, which is the indicator management asks for

For a first estimate with your own data, use the energy efficiency calculator and the energy savings spreadsheet.

How to start #

1. Confirm whether your company must report, by size or by consumption.
2. Gather twelve months of electricity and fuel bills to build the baseline.
3. Identify the three or four uses that account for most of the consumption.
4. Install metering on those panels before committing to targets.
5. Define an energy-per-unit-produced indicator and review it every month.

What does iGromi do? #

We install per-panel, per-phase energy meters that transmit to an Edge PC inside the plant, without running cable back to a control room; how it works is covered in the guide to industrial telemetry. Because we also measure production, the dashboard shows energy per unit produced and not just consumption. More detail in energy management.

We do not file the official report or perform certified energy audits: we deliver the measured data that the energy manager or the consultant uses to build the management system and the report.

Frequently asked questions #

How do I know if my company is a CCGE?

The Ministry of Energy publishes the list each year by resolution in the Diario Oficial (Chile's official gazette). If the company reports by size or by consumption, it is worth checking every year.

Is ISO 50001 certification mandatory?

The law requires an energy management system, not any particular certification. ISO 50001 is the most widely used reference for building one.

How much is 50 teracalories?

Roughly 58 GWh per year, adding electricity and fuels. A mid-sized food plant is usually well below that, but it can still fall under the obligation because of the company's size.

What is an energy manager?

The person or firm that coordinates the energy management system: measures, proposes measures, follows up and reports. In a plant it is usually someone from maintenance or engineering with outside support.