ABSTRACT
The main purpose of this chapter is to analyze the impact of the transformations in the global energy system, from a regional perspective, focusing on the case of South America. To this end, we will start from the critical view of the International Political Economy (IPE), in its variant of the Latin American school, and the recent contributions of the IPE of energy to understand the nexus between global changes, regional integration and energy policies. South America has a rich history of natural gas and electricity cross-border connections (initially through binational hydroelectric dams) dating back to the 1970s, but the current energy changes of global capitalism represent some challenges for the process of regional integration. We will focus on the incorporation of renewable energies in the national energy mix as a climate policy and on the increase in the trade of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to guarantee national energy security.
