Led by the Ministry of Environment and Energy, the Ecuador Geothermal Roundtable has been officially launched as an important milestone toward building Ecuador’s Geothermal Development Plan. The first Dialogue Workshop of the roundtable was held in Quito with representatives from geothermal institutions, research, electricity generation, and electricity distribution in attendance.
With support from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the Geothermal Roundtable aims to create a forum to discuss the technical and institutional support needed for geothermal development. The call for interest for professionals and companies to participate in the roundtable was made around four years ago.
Earlier, this year a contract was signed with the PEGEC consortium to provide consultancy for the guidelines and planning towards the creation of the Geothermal Development Plan. The PEGEC consortium’s working group comprises a diverse group of Salvadoran and Ecuadorian professionals who aim to contribute their expertise to establishing guidelines for geothermal work in Ecuador in the coming years.
During the launch event of the roundtable, the working groups were also identified across five thematic areas:
- Technical
- Regulatory
- Economic-Financial
- Environmental
- Direct Uses
In attendance at the launch event were representatives the IDB, the Ecuadorian Association of Renewable Energies and Energy Efficiency (AEEREE), the Ministry of Environment and Energy (MAE), the Ecuadorian Electricity Corporation (CELEC), the Institute of Geological and Energy Research (IIGE), the Ecuadorian Geothermal Association (AGE), and the Geophysical Institute of the National Polytechnic School (IG-EPN).
Although Ecuador has several high-potential geothermal sites located in areas of recent volcanism, there is yet to be any substantial development and progress through the years has remained slow. In 2025, CELEC announced a shortlist of three eligible companies for consultancy work for the Chachimbiro geothermal project. There has been no reported updates on this project. More recently, the Ministry of Environment and Energy with the support of CELEC conducted a geological prospecting campaign at the Sierra Negra geothermal prospect.
Source: Instituto Geofisico Escuela Politecnica Nacional, Youtopia Ecuador, and Ministerio Ambiente y Energia
