Sustainable energy in rural areas as part of energy sector modernization in latin america and the caribbean

Electric power industry in the world seems to have reached a watershed in history, characterized by deregulation, breakup of state monopolies, participation of private-sector capital, globalization of trade operations and a search for more environmentally friendly technological alternatives. Latin America is not removed from this process. Over the last few years, dramatic changes have taken place in the organizational, economic, and technological structures of the region's power utilities. Each country has adopted the schemes that it deemed most suitable to move toward a modern, efficient, and profitable electric power sector. Nevertheless, there is also a risk that the changes will have exogenous motivations or else are motivated solely by the need to capitalize with the sale of assets of the power utilities to resolve the difficult economic situation being experienced by some of the countries. In these cases, the opportunity for a genuine search of alternative schemes that help to guarantee equity and opportunity in electric power supply, as well as environmental protection, would be wasted. (The author)