On Wednesday 14 June, during an official visit to Chile, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, together with President Gabriel Boric, presided over a ceremony to launch two major cooperation initiatives between the EU and Chile in the field of renewable hydrogen.
The projects, entitled ‘Team Europe Fund for Renewable Hydrogen in Chile’ and ‘Team Europe for the Development of Renewable Hydrogen in Chile’, aim to promote the development and use of green hydrogen.
Developing green hydrogen. The first of these will channel funds to support the development of the production and use of renewable hydrogen in Chile. With an initial budget of “€225 million”, as announced by Mrs von der Leyen, this fund will play a key role in growing the hydrogen industry in the country.
The second project is expected to strengthen conditions for a renewable and sustainable hydrogen economy in Chile, which will “create quality jobs and boost renewable hydrogen exports worldwide, including to the EU”, according to the President of the Commission.
In a statement made to the press, Mrs von der Leyen also emphasised the importance of green hydrogen in the transition to a clean economy, noting that global demand for this resource will increase considerably in the years to come. She also noted the crucial role played by Chile as a friend and partner in the production of renewable hydrogen. “We therefore need friends who can produce this green hydrogen”, she said.
Raw materials. In the end, the meeting between the two presidents did not provide an opportunity to announce the signing of a partnership between the EU and Chile on value chains for critical raw materials. However, Mrs von der Leyen indicated that the two partners were working on this topic. (Nithya Paquiry and Léa Marchal)