Graham,
There are a number of things I find interesting here.
The first one is that a problem (rising energy costs and reliability) was identified and an effort made to successfully address it.

Secondly, the localised assets were used to a solve the problems.

The third is that there were flow on benefits.

Cutting the cost of electricity production by half is no mean feat.

As stated, the economic benefits are profound - many renewable energy alarmists here on OLO have the economic disaster myth playing on loop.

As an aside, biochar produced by utilising eucalypt for energy would be an added bonus for agriculture.

"Uruguay has some of the highest electricity prices in South America, largely due to its heavy reliance on renewable sources (98% of generation from renewables like hydro, wind, and solar in 2025), which involves significant infrastructure investments."

Among South American countries, only Chile is more expensive.

As usual with these things, the renewable fetishists only want to talk about the cost of production while ignoring all the other costs involved in delivering power. That's because all those other costs surrounding renewables is what makes them so expensive and why we see throughout the world evidence that the more renewables a nation has the higher their retail costs.

We saw Chris Bowen getting a soft-ball interview on the ABC last night, and true to form all he wanted to do was talk about wholesale prices. But even he had to admit that wholesale prices only make up 30% of the total retail costs.

Inflation numbers announced yesterday show inflation surging. And one of the main causes was electricity prices which have risen 37.1% in the year to October 2025.

Tell me again how cheap renewables are!.

WTF?

As per usual mhaze's simplistic outlook crumbles under the pressure of thoughtful analysis.

Uruguay made the move to renewables because the country faced a classic small-nation dilemma: high electricity demand growth, almost no domestic fossil fuel resources, and a rising dependence on imported oil and gas. Hydropower had already been tapped, and blackouts were beginning to creep into both industrial and residential sectors.

By the early 2010s, Uruguay’s government realized that continuing to rely on imported fossil fuels was economically unsustainable.

Hence the pivot to renewables. Resource rich Venezuela can produce electricity for US$0.05 per kWh so Uruguay had to take a different path.

Uruguay now has highest per capita income in Latin America. The reduction in the poverty rate from 30% to 8% is remarkable

The successful forward march of renewable technology in the energy sector continues and no amount of pearl clutching from the alarmists is going to stop this advance.

I wonder if the Uruguay tale was a product of the 480 odd on their taxpayer funded jaunt to cop30? Good to see Australia's future getting weed up a wall.

End net zero. Stop the grifters ripping us off.

Western Australia had a “ 5 year plan” to become a renewable energy and green-hydrogen “superpower”.

The 5 years is now up, and nothing has happened apart from taxpayers getting a $2 billion bill for the experiment.

The state's emissions are also higher than they were 20 years ago.

The WA government has used “bill credits, hidden subsidies and the balance sheets of state-owned utilities” to mask the fiscal and economic consequences of its bad decision.

Australian politicians continue to be shonky.

In Australia generally, economist Judith Sloan says it will be a decade before electricity prices come down, if ever.

Even though the hapless Treasure is still mouthing the absurdity that renewable energy is the cheapest, prices rose by 37% this year!

This “cheap” electricity has undoubtedly contributed to the rise of housing by 5.9%; transport 2.7%; clothing 5.4%, and food 3.2%.

Lying by the Albanese government has increased by umpteen percent; and the long decline of Australia continues.

"Uruguay made the move to renewables because the country faced a classic small-nation dilemma: high electricity demand growth, almost no domestic fossil fuel resources,"

Well Australia doesn't have that problem. Does it? We have domestic fuel resources up the wazoo. So Uruguay has nothing to teach us.

"Uruguay now has highest per capita income in Latin America. "

Actually second highest (facts never were WTF's strong suit). Guyana has a higher per capita GDP. Oh and how did they manage that? By exporting fossil fuels to anyone who'll buy it. So if WTF wants to take a lesson from South America, maybe that's the one he should follow.

Look WTF... I get that you're all in on renewables irrespective of the facts. But maybe you need to stop trying to find reasons we should go along with your fantasies and just come out and say that you think renewables are the only way we can avoid whatever is the latest climate catastrophe du jour and you don't care about the costs to Australia or the affects on Australians.

Some countries will go renewables because they have no choice. We aren't in that group and the sooner you and the other renewable fetishists realise it the better.