Corfo announced on March 13 that it has awarded $6 million in funding to Colbún for the development of a green hydrogen (H2V) industrial ring project aimed at the logistics sector linking the Metropolitan Region with the main ports of the Valparaíso Region. The total investment for the initiative is $13.7 million, with additional contributions from participating companies Marval and Walmart Chile.
The project is part of Corfo’s strategy to promote industrial rings around green hydrogen, integrating production, storage, distribution, and consumption in sectors with intensive transport and logistics needs. This effort follows the launch of the Green Hydrogen Action Plan 2023-2030 in May 2024, which outlines a roadmap for sustainable industry deployment by coordinating actions among ministries and aligning regional initiatives.
According to Corfo’s executive vice president José Miguel Benavente, “the Corporation chose Colbún’s project ‘given its strategic alignment with the focus on Green Hydrogen Industrial Rings, which will activate real demand and productive linkages in the Metropolitan and Valparaíso regions. That effective demand and operational use of H2V will be used in logistics and heavy transport, with real clients and fleets. There is an advanced level of maturity in the proposal that also has a clear business model.'”
The four-year initiative aims to supply green hydrogen to a fleet of forklifts and tractor-trailers operating at logistics centers and along interregional routes between Santiago and Valparaíso. The plan includes installing a 3 MW electrolysis plant at El Peñón Distribution Center in San Bernardo, along with high-pressure compression and storage systems to produce, store, and dispense fuel within the complex.
Marval will co-execute by developing a fleet of hydrogen-powered trucks for interregional transport. Walmart Chile will participate as an associated company using hydrogen-powered forklifts at El Peñón Distribution Center. The plant’s electricity supply will be entirely renewable through power purchase agreements (PPA), consuming about 12 GWh annually. Training programs for operators and technicians are also planned to build specialized human capital.
Environmentally, replacing diesel with green hydrogen is expected to avoid approximately 950 tons of CO₂ emissions per year by substituting around 350 thousand liters of diesel annually. The project’s location near major highways facilitates distribution throughout both regions while serving as a demonstration model for future industrial hydrogen corridors.
