The Chilean government announced the opening of a call for green hydrogen projects in Chile, with the aim of accelerating the realization of programs that will make a significant contribution to achieving carbon neutrality, as well as creating jobs and opportunities at the local level, through the provision of financing.
National and international companies interested in developing and implementing a green hydrogen production project with a capacity greater than 10 megawatts that could be operational by December 2025 may apply. This will result in the delivery of funding totaling up to $30 million to one or more programs.
“Our strategy contemplates the development of the fuel in different stages. In the first, the hydrogen produced is intended to be used by our key industries in such a way that they can lower their carbon footprint and gain competitiveness. Once the industry is consolidated we will be able to export the hydrogen. The development of this industry opens up the opportunity for us to generate a paradigm shift in the productive matrix of our economy in just one generation. When we launched the strategy in November, we had 20 projects to develop green hydrogen and we have already more than doubled that number: today there are more than 40 projects to produce or consume green hydrogen in Chile.”
Juan Carlos Jobet, Minister of Energy and Mining.
“Corfo, since its inception, has played a fundamental role in shaping the future of the Chilean economy, contributing to the empowerment of industries that have contributed to the development of the country. That is why we have been promoting green hydrogen with different initiatives for years, and today we are taking an important step with the opening of this call that aims to support the development of the first projects of this energy in the country, and which will be an important element to encourage a sustainable reactivation and for the generation of employment and more opportunities at the local level. We hope that there is a high interest on the part of companies, so that we put our country at the forefront of sustainable development worldwide.”
Pablo Terrazas, Executive Vice President of Corfo.
Green hydrogen has the potential to be a high-value industry for Chile’s and the world’s economies. Chile is forecast to be the most cost-competitive producer of renewable energy on a global scale, with this sector expected to generate annual revenues of more than 30 billion dollars by 2050.
According to international projections, the green hydrogen industry will result in our country exporting approximately 24 billion dollars in 2050 and having a domestic market worth $9 billion, which is comparable to what Chile exports in copper today (between $30 and 40 billion per year).
