The Chilean Ministry of Public Works has revealed the financial bids for the National Tsunami Early Warning System project. The economic proposals submitted by the Emergency Infrastructure Consortium—comprising Icafal Inversiones SA and Dominion SpA—and the Tsunami Early Warning Group, consisting of Globe, Gilat Satellite Networks, Finvest, and Lafcarr Project & Design. The project, which represents an estimated investment of approximately US$113 million under a 20-year concession, will deploy a network of 1,029 technologically advanced sirens along Chile’s coastline. Designed to enhance disaster preparedness, the system will provide coastal communities with timely alerts of potential natural hazards through integrated audible and visual alarm units, supported by redundant communication systems and centralized control centers.

The project includes 1,003 new sirens, which will be added to the 26 already in place (in the Arica and Parinacota and O'Higgins regions). These sirens will be modernized and integrated into the system coordinated by the National Disaster Prevention and Response Service (SENAPRED). With this, the new system will provide coverage to the entire country. The national control center will be located in the Metropolitan Region. This will allow for effective notification of the entire population living in coastal areas, particularly those at risk or in danger, in the event of a tsunami. The alarms will be installed on an 11-meter-high steel pole with a support for solar panels and energy storage batteries. These sirens will emit a sound wave that, in case of danger, will alert the population so that residents can move to the safe zones established in each town's evacuation plans. 

The system will be activated remotely, either from SENAPRED’s regional offices, which will control sirens within their respective regions, or from the central office in Santiago, which will oversee all regions and function as a backup control center. The project also includes portable satellite activation kits to ensure system operation if SENAPRED facilities must be evacuated. This initiative will strengthen and complement the existing emergency prevention infrastructure, including the Emergency Alert System (SAE), which delivers warning messages to mobile phones during earthquakes, fires, and other emergencies, as well as the ABC emergency response network comprising ambulance, fire, and police services.

The project is expected to be awarded within the first half of 2026, with construction slated to begin in October 2027. The facility is projected to become operational in July 2030.