First phase of major green hydrogen project in Chile seeks enviro nod

The first phase of a USD-11-billion (EUR 10.0bn) green hydrogen and green ammonia project in Chile, owned by Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) and two Austrian companies, has been filed for environmental approval.

The first phase of the project includes a seawater desalination plant and onshore wind capacity of 1.4 GW from plants equipped with 194 turbines. It also envisages the construction of a process plant for converting electrical energy into green hydrogen and subsequently into green ammonia, a green ammonia interim storage facility and a multi-purpose port with a sea terminal, one of the co-owners, AustriaEnergy International GmbH, said on Tuesday.

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This stage of the initiative targets annual production of 270,000 tonnes of hydrogen, converted into 1.3 million tonnes of ammonia. The interim three-tank storage facility is planned with a capacity of 180,000 tonnes per year.

After three and a half years of preparatory works, paperwork has been submitted to the Chilean environmental authority, the developer said in a press statement.

The environmental approval is expected by the fourth quarter of 2025. Construction works are planned to start in the first half of 2027 and completion is anticipated in the second half of 2030.

The Chilean scheme is realised by three partners -- AustriaEnergy and Oekowind EE GmbH, each holding a stake of 24.5%, and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) which owns 51% after joining the Austrian partnership in 2022. CIP plans a complete buyout in 2026 when the final investment decision (FID) should be made.

The second stage of the project, for which the parties expect to file for environmental impact assessment in the first quarter of 2026, will see the installation of 2.1 GW of wind power. Construction is expected to take three years.

The overall project is described as the largest project ever to undergo an environmental impact assessment in Chile.

(USD 1 = EUR 0.916)