Recently, in the Magellan Region of Chile, the city of San Gregorio north of Punta Arenas reached a historic moment - the HNH Energy Green Ammonia Production and Export Integrated Project passed the environmental impact assessment approval with 12 full votes. This mega project with a total investment of approximately 11 billion US dollars has broken the record for the largest investment in Chile's environmental impact assessment system, becoming a landmark event for the South American green hydrogen industry to move from planning to implementation.

Wind power ammonia production full chain closed-loop

The project covers the entire industry chain of green power generation, electrolytic hydrogen production, synthetic ammonia conversion, seawater desalination, and port transportation, and is jointly developed by CIP from Denmark, Austria Energy from Austria, and Ö kowind. The site is located with globally leading wind resources, equipped with 194 wind turbines with a total installed capacity of 1.4GW and a supporting 300MWh energy storage system; Build a 1GW electrolytic water hydrogen production facility with an annual output of 270000 tons of green hydrogen and further synthesize an annual output of 1.3 million tons of green ammonia. The project will be constructed in two phases: the first phase will produce 580000 tons of green ammonia annually; After the second phase expansion, it will be increased to 1.3 million tons. The design life is 50 years, the construction period is about 6 years, and it is planned to be put into operation in the second half of 2030.

National strategy shifts from export to internal and external improvement

Chile released its first national green hydrogen strategy in 2020, with an updated version in March 2026, proposing a development strategy that combines internal and external improvements to promote external development - prioritizing the cultivation of local application scenarios to reduce technology and production costs, and then expanding into international markets. Clear strategic goals set: domestic green hydrogen consumption of 100000 to 200000 tons and export of 300000 to 700000 tons by 2035; By 2050, the total production will reach 2 to 3.5 million tons. 83 green hydrogen projects in Chile are at different stages, with a total investment of over 30 billion US dollars entering the environmental impact assessment system, and a cluster of giant hydrogen energy projects in the south has formed. Keywords: New Energy News Network, Hydrogen Energy, Green Ammonia

Three real-life levels test landing ability

The approval of the environmental impact assessment is just a ticket to entry. The first level is to lock in long-term buyers - although the project has signed a 10-year letter of intent with Ameropa Switzerland, it is not legally binding, and the global green ammonia market has not yet exploded on a large scale. The second round of FEED design and billion dollar financing - the project needs to complete front-end engineering design, and the major shareholder CIP has clearly stated that no additional investment will be made. Local industry research shows that only 1 to 2 out of 17 large-scale green hydrogen projects can ultimately be financed and implemented. The third aspect is land ownership and community relations - involving the interests of estate owners and local communities. HNH Energy has negotiated with the $4.7 billion Acuario project to share infrastructure. The Chilean green hydrogen industry is transitioning from competing for environmental impact assessments to achieving success. Whether financing can be completed and buyers can be found will determine whether the entire green hydrogen chain in South America can be truly connected.Editor/Gao Xue