HIF Global, partners draw first litres of e-fuels at Haru Oni demo plant in Chile

HIF Global said on Tuesday it had produced the first litres of synthetic gasoline at its Haru Oni e-fuels demonstration plant in southern Chile.

The first drops of the e-fuel were poured into a Porsche 911 in a ceremony to mark the beginning of fuel production using renewable energy, green hydrogen and recycled CO2.

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Located in the windy region of Magallanes, the Haru Oni facility is equipped with a single 3.4-MW Siemens Gamesa wind turbine, a 1.2-MW Siemens Energy electrolyser, the methanol synthesis technology by Johnson Matthey and a methanol-to-gasoline (MTG) technology licensed from ExxonMobile.

Renewables firm Enel Green Power is a partner in the project and in charge of wind power generation and green hydrogen production. Other stakeholders are Chilean state-owned oil company Empresa Nacional del Petroleo SA (ENAP), gas company Empresas Gasco and Porsche as the e-fuels off-taker. The German federal ministry for economic affairs and energy contributed funding towards the project.

HIF Global, which is working to launch similar e-fuel plants in Australia and Texas, is the Haru Oni owner and lead developer.

The provider of CO2 capture technology has not been named. In a press release in April 2021, US firm Global Thermostat LLC stated it had signed an agreement with HIF to supply its direct air capture equipment for the Haru Oni project.

According to HIF Global, the CO2 emissions linked to the production of the first litres were fully mitigated with certified carbon credits under the UN Clean Development Mechanism.

The Haru Oni plant is expected to start commercial operation in March 2023, HIF Global said. In the pilot phase, the facility will produce 350 tonnes of e-methanol per year and 130,000 litres of e-gasoline per year.