Chilean power generator Colbún's green hydrogen strategy

Chilean power generator Colbún is sharpening its focus on green hydrogen, an industry still in the early stages, but which is forecast to grow rapidly over the coming years, spurred by local applications and international demand, chiefly from Europe and Asia.

As these winds of change gather strength, Colbún, which has about 4GW of installed generation capacity, recently established a green hydrogen division and appointed Juan Pablo Fiedler to head it. A civil industrial engineer, Fiedler has 20 years of experience and was Colbún’s fuels manager prior to being given the green hydrogen role.

BNamericas speaks with Fiedler to find out more about the company’s strategy and projects in the segment.

BNamericas: What are your strategic priorities, for example, focusing on projects for local use or projects aimed at the export market and/or forming alliances with other companies?

Fiedler: About two years ago, Colbún incorporated green hydrogen into its strategic agenda, with the clear aim intention of positioning itself as a relevant player in this new market. 

Considering our expertise in generating electricity using renewable energies and the essential role they play in the production of this new fuel, we saw a natural synergy. More than half of the cost of hydrogen is energy, and that’s why we consider Colbún to be positioned to have a key role in this industry. To date, we’re strongly promoting the development of H2V [green hydrogen], particularly through alliances with producers and offtakers or consumers of this fuel. Our strategy is aimed at developing both the domestic market and the export market. 

In this context, and based on the dynamism that we see in this business, a few months ago the company was mulling an internal reorganization that resulted, among other changes, in the creation of the green hydrogen division. The goal is to promote this new business opportunity even more, in line with our growth strategy.

A couple of months ago, a team of Colbún executives visited Europe to explore alliances with possible partners to co-develop H2V projects and their derivatives, such as ammonia and synthetic fuels. They used the occasion to learn about the latest trends in this matter and how they’re preparing in Europe for the importation of this fuel. 

They also participated in the World Hydrogen Summit & Exhibition 2022, a global platform dedicated to demonstrating the progress of the hydrogen industry. They were part of the Chilean delegation, led by the ministry of energy, together with the [industry chamber] H2 Chile association, [state oil firm] Enap, [investment promotion agency] InvestChile and other private companies, whose mission was to position Chile in the green hydrogen industry in Europe.

BNamericas: In the area of green hydrogen, what is Colbún currently doing? Does it have related projects in the pipeline, for example?

Fiedler: At Colbún we understand green hydrogen as one of the best options to decarbonize those productive sectors where electrification isn’t feasible, which is why we’re exploring different development spaces.

With the aim of taking advantage of the great potential for reducing emissions from transport in particular and mobility in general, last year we signed an alliance with Komatsu Cummins Chile to develop green hydrogen with a focus on electromobility in cargo transport. The initiative, called ‘Power to movility-H2V, uso de hidrógeno para la electromovilidad’, was our first foray into H2V.

And on June 7, together with [French industrial gas company] Air Liquide and [Chilean energy company] Copec, we signed an agreement with Santiago airport, the objective of which is to transform it into the first in Latin America to operate with this fuel. As leaders in the electricity generation sector in Chile, our role will be to provide renewable energy to the project and to guarantee the energy efficiency of the value chain. 

The electricity will come both from photovoltaic panels that we will install and operate at the airport, as well as from our various renewable energy plants.

BNamericas: Colbún, being a generator, has infrastructure in place and knowledge of the fuel market. Is leveraging these resources – in addition to your renewable energy projects – part of your plans?

Fiedler: We have experience in the development and management of large projects – construction of power plants – as well as in offering energy solutions and value-added services for our clients, as well as knowledge of the fuel market.

We also have a large number of projects, coherent and consistent with the ambition of being leaders in the energy transition. The climatic urgency, the challenges of transforming the economy and the electricity sector, force us to accelerate our pace.

We believe that the combination of these factors puts us in a positive position to help promote H2V in Chile, a country that also has tremendous potential for the development of this fuel.