Chile losing global green hydrogen head-start, companies say
SANTIAGO, Nov 7 (Reuters) – Industry insiders are worried Chile is falling behind the global green hydrogen race despite having a head-start due to its strong renewable energy matrix and geographic advantage to export to Asian markets.
In a panel about energy transition in Santiago, companies betting billions on green hydrogen in the Andean nation said lengthy permitting and a lack of infrastructure, mainly ports and energy transmission, are holding the industry back while other countries are charging ahead.
Mario Marchese, project director for HNH Energy an $11 billion green hydrogen project in Chile’s Patagonia, said :
We had a three, four year head start compared to the rest of the world in implementing these projects, but today that’s down to months,
Marchese said,
We’re in a race to see who gets first to markets first,
“And every day that window is closing and we’re losing that war.”
HNH Energy, backed by AustriaEnergy, Okowind and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, aims to produce 1.3 megatons of ammonia and 270,000 tons of hydrogen a year with a 1.4 Gigawatt wind farm. It’s one of the largest green hydrogen projects in the world and the largest investment to go through Chile’s environmental permitting process.
Marchese said, adding that the permitting has been the most challenging part of the project and they hope to sign construction contracts in the first half of 2027.
We’ve spent four years preparing the environmental permit, we’ve spent dozens of millions of dollars to get to this stage and we still have a long road to go,
Marchese noted that Australia is racing to reach Asian markets first and Brazil is also emerging as a global competitor.
Katherine Orozco, project development manager for EDF Chile, a subsidiary of France’s EDF that has a $2 billion investment plan, said Chile’s abundance of solar energy in its northern desert regions and wind energy in the Patagonian south, along with coastal proximity, gave it a big advantage over other countries in Latin America.
Orozco said,
When it comes to hydrogen, 60 or 70 percent of the cost is from electrical costs from renewable,
“That’s what should give us an advantage against the rest of the world, so we shouldn’t lose that.”
Orozco said that one of the biggest challenges she sees is a lack of electrical transmission lines and ports to export green hydrogen. Brazil, she noted, has already started developing ports, giving it an advantage over Chile.
Both Orozco and Marchese noted that the government is aiding in public-private investment and two bills aimed at speeding up permits, but both have been delayed in congress.
The Reuters Power Up newsletter provides everything you need to know about the global energy industry. Sign up here.
READ the latest news shaping the hydrogen market at Hydrogen Central
Chile losing global green hydrogen head-start, companies say, source
