The main objectives of this strategy are to produce the cheapest green hydrogen on the planet by 2030, to be among the top 3 exporters by 2040 and to have 5 GW of electrolysis capacity under development by 2025.
An ambitious national strategy that allows the country to develop the green hydrogen industry and place Chile among the world’s leading producers of this renewable fuel by 2040 were announced by President Sebastián Piñera and the Minister of Energy, Juan Carlos Jobet, at the inauguration the international conference ” Chile 2020: Green Hydrogen Summit “.
During the event – the largest in Latin America and one of the main open access digital conferences on the subject at an international level – President Piñera highlighted that “ hydrogen will allow us to bet on a balanced development throughout the country, as well as promote the growth of our human capital, generating an engine of progress and economic reactivation. Green hydrogen will allow us to export our renewable energies to a world that is rapidly moving towards decarbonisation and that needs clean and affordable energy ”.
The Minister of Energy, Juan Carlos Jobet, detailed the action plan that aims to make Chile a world leader in the production and export of green hydrogen . This new pole of progress for the country will imply, according to estimates, the creation of some 100,000 jobs and US $ 200 billion in investment over the next 20 years.
The Minister of Energy affirmed that “ this new industry that will be developed can reach the relevance that the mining sector has in the national economy. In addition, it will help the process of decarbonizing some productive activities, such as mining and agriculture itself, giving them greater international competitiveness and contributing to the goal of a zero-emissions country by 2050 ”.
“Green hydrogen is a strategic opportunity for Chile . Our country is the ideal place to produce and export green hydrogen and its derivatives, including ammonia, methanol, and synthetic fuels. Various analyzes, including those of the International Energy Agency and McKinsey & Company, show that Chile’s enormous wealth of renewable energy would allow it to produce the most competitive green hydrogen on the planet and on a large scale ”, highlighted Jobet.
Objectives and actions
Chile’s national green hydrogen strategy has 3 main objectives: Produce the cheapest green hydrogen on the planet by 2030, be among the top 3 exporters by 2040 and have 5 GW of electrolysis capacity under development by 2025.
To this end, a concrete action plan has been developed to accelerate the deployment of green hydrogen in key national applications by 2025 and enter the export market by 2030.
Among them is the completion of a financing round for US $ 50 million for green hydrogen projects, in order to help investors close gaps and create early experience.
In parallel, an operational team -task-force- will be established to monitor the permitting process and the development of green hydrogen pilings and its derivatives.
“Along with this,” Jobet explained, ” we will create another operational team to position Chile internationally and generate three international consortia of at least 1 GW each in the country .”
Quota mechanisms in gas networks will also be explored to increase the demand for this clean fuel, an experience similar to the one that was successfully applied to promote renewable energies.
To create internal demand, a working group will be created with State companies to accelerate the adoption of green hydrogen in them and their suppliers. Likewise, it will be sought that hydrogen is considered in the political, ordering and territorial planning processes, in particular to raise and solve infrastructure needs .
On another level, Jobet reported that a public / private table will be set up to discuss the route at a carbon price and taxes that better reflect the externalities of fuels. Also, he said, the Ministry will play an active role in solving critical barriers, such as establishing the necessary security standards to guarantee the certainty of planning.
Other key actions contemplated in the strategy are the development of capacities and knowledge transfer to satisfy the human capital needs that this new industry will demand and the involvement of communities and local stakeholders, to ensure early and continuous participation and to increase the value that local suppliers can capture.
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