Grid Materials Reverse Logistics

Every year the processes of expansion and / or maintenance of the electric grid generates tons of waste. For Enel, this comes as an opportunity in order to give these materials and components a second life.

Enel Distribución centers the installation and removal of assets from the electricity grid in a logistics platform by means of which it maintains traceability of all components. Some of the items removed have a large potential to be valued in the secondary market. This is why, since 2019, a contract was activated endowing a second life to these materials: the provider of this service receives the written off assets, classifies them and processes them to extract the materials that may be of value in the secondary market, thus avoiding their disposal in sanitary landfills as waste.

Since 2019 it has become possible to recirculate tons of materials through recycling and recovery processes, managing to value more than 600 tons of materials in 2020, among which stand out 350 tons of cables, 200 tons of metals and more than 450 tons of transformers. This generated both environmental benefits and new non-operating income for the company, reduced disposal costs, also contributed to the creation of secondary raw material markets in the country.

This project allows Enel to close the life cycle of the components in the electric power grid, recirculating those whose use cannot be continued, therefore, responding to the Circular Economy pillar "New Life Cycles", contributing to the Sustainable Development Objective 12: Responsible Consumption and Production and number 13: Climate Action.