SANTIAGO, Chile — A Chilean appeals court has suspended a controversial hydroelectric project in the country’s Patagonia region that has sparked large protests.
Environmental groups and legislators had filed legal actions alleging that a government commission hadn’t attended technical reviews of the project before approving it. The court responded Monday by paralyzing the ongoing government approval process.
The Italian company Endesa and the Chilean firm Colbun plan to build five facilities that would generate 2,750 megawatts of electricity. The energy would travel about 1,800 kilometers (1,100 miles) through transmission lines to the capital of Santiago.
President Sebastian Pinera supports the project, but critics have suggested developing other forms of renewable energy.
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via Chile court suspends controversial dam project supported by president