Chile’s development agency Corfo is set to support green hydrogen projects with a new $1 billion fund, slated to be established later this year.
“The fund will offer two main avenues for access: one through loans with more favorable terms than those available in the market, and the other via guarantees to secure additional loans,” Ángel Caviedes, head of the energy ministry’s new energies unit, told BNamericas at the Latam Mobility Cono Sur summit in Santiago.
The new funding mechanism will support projects related to green hydrogen demand, generation, and components manufacturing. Funding will be provided by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the World Bank, the European Investment Bank (EIB), the German development bank KfW, and the Latin American development bank CAF.
Caviedes highlighted that the lack of specific regulations for the green hydrogen sector remains a significant challenge for Chile’s green hydrogen initiatives. However, the ministry has established a protocol to prevent project delays due to regulatory issues.
Currently, project developers can apply for sector permits under existing regulations, and several large-scale green hydrogen projects are in the environmental evaluation phase. The government has issued security guidelines for green hydrogen facilities and plans to release a new schedule in September for drafting additional industry regulations, Caviedes added.
Chile’s green hydrogen strategy aims to address both domestic consumption and export markets and includes comprehensive infrastructure development plans.
