This Tuesday the Council of the Americas (COA) – founded by the Rockefeller family and considered the most influential soft power of the United States in the region – organizes a new edition of the Conference of Cities, the traditional business meeting that takes place every year in Chile in alliance with the Ministry of Finance, and from which The counter is Media Partner.
Susan Segal is the historical president and CEO of the influential study center and before the meeting she came to La Mesa de The counter to talk about the focus of this year’s event.
“Chile is one of the most important and stable countries for investment and there is a lot of interest from North American companies in investing in the country, particularly in lithium, renewable energy and green hydrogen,” he said.
In the interview, Segal highlighted that institutions remain strong in Chile, and regarding the pessimism of local businessmen, he emphasized that international investors often have a more optimistic view of the country’s economy.
He highlighted the crucial role of Chile and the region in the energy transition, particularly in relation to lithium, and the need for the country to process more valuable materials on its territory instead of just exporting.
He added that, in addition to interest in investing in mining and renewable energy, there is also a lot of interest in agriculture, services and telecommunications.
The president of the COA highlighted that Chile and the region are increasingly important for the United States, “regardless of who wins the November elections, because there is enormous potential for natural resources, energy, agribusiness and entrepreneurship.”
And he candidly suggested that the cold war between China and the United States is an opportunity for our country and the region, since one of the lessons of the pandemic for companies is that not everything is cost and profitability, but equal or The most important thing is the security of the logistics chain. “There is awareness of the need for a safer value chain within the region,” he said.
The Minister of Finance, Mario Marcel, will be present at this week’s meeting; the United States ambassador to Chile, Bernadette Meehan; the president of Codelco, Máximo Pacheco; the general manager of Amazon Web Services in Chile, Felipe Lira; and the founders of the startups Betterfly and Buk, Eduardo della Maggiora and Santiago Lira, respectively.
