EIG and Fluxys partnership to support hydrogen developments in Chile

EIG and Fluxys will jointly acquire an 80% equity stake in GNL Quintero SA (the largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) regasification terminal in Chile) from Enagas Chile SpA and affiliates of OMERS Infrastructure.

Quintero is a key energy infrastructure business supporting Chile’s decarbonisation strategy with a bridging fuel that allows for the reconciliation of economic growth with the uptake of renewables and the phasing out of coal.

The terminal strategic location in Quintero Bay supplies a diversified base of customers in central Chile across residential, commercial, industrial, transportation and power generation sectors.

The terminal owns 75% of the country´s LNG regasification capacity, and in 2021, 67% of the total natural gas imports (both LNG and pipeline imports) arrived in Chile through this strategic asset.

Chile has world-class solar and wind resources and a RES capacity equivalent to 4% of total global energy demand. The country is aiming to become one of the world’s three largest green hydrogen producers with plans to install 200 GW of renewable power by 2040 to produce green hydrogen. Chile already has signed several agreements to promote the export of green hydrogen, among others, with the Belgian ports of Antwerp/Zeebrugge, Germany, the Port of Rotterdam and South Korea.

The acquisition builds on EIG’s presence in the Chilean market, where the firm owns Cerro Dominador, a groundbreaking solar complex that combines a 100MW photovoltaic (PV) plant with a 110MW concentrated solar power (CSP) plant.

EIG also is a partner in AME S.p.A, a Chile-based project developer and independent power producer. AME co-owns Generadora Metropolitana, the fifth largest electricity generation company in Chile, as well as HIF Global, a leader in the hydrogen and e-fuels sector, with a series of commercial-scale projects in development and expected to reach construction over the next several years.

Blair Thomas, EIG’s Chairman and CEO, said, “Quintero’s strong presence in natural gas infrastructure serves as an attractive launching point to expand its presence in related and adjacent sectors, including storage, truck loading and regasification, as well as to develop production capacity for green hydrogen.”

Pascal De Buck, Fluxys’ MD and CEO, added, “With 3 LNG terminals in Europe, our ambition to invest outside Europe and to become the transporter of new energy carriers, Quintero is a perfect fit with our strategy for growth in view of the low carbon future.”