Figure 4 – Projected Demand by Components (2026-2046). Blue bars represent vegetative base demand. Orange bars quantify the incremental impact of new mining projects. The black line illustrates the total aggregated demand trend (Source: Own elaboration based on COES & MINEM). 4.7. Deep Geothermal Potential and Continental Scalability Heat in Place analysis shows that geothermal resources shift from local to continental with greater depth. At 2000 m, high enthalpy is limited to the Andean volcanic arc; at 4000 m, anomalies expand towards intra-plate basins, enabling EGS systems. At 7000 m, the resource becomes nearly ubiquitous, with superhot zones in the mountain range and sufficient temperatures in the craton, confirming deep geothermal as a massive and scalable reserve for base supply in mining outside the volcanic axis (Figure 5). Figure 5 – Geothermal energy potential maps (Heat in Place) in South America at depths of: a) 2000 m, b) 4000 m, and c) 7000 m (Adapted from Project InnerSpace, 2025). 138
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