Internet Explorer, Chrome Browser, Firefox Browser, Safari Browser
Press Release10 September 2021Siemens EnergyMunich/Stuttgart
Construction begins on world’s first integrated commercial plant for producing CO2-neutral fuel in Chile
“I’m pleased that we’re making progress on this
international lighthouse project for the hydrogen economy together with strong
international partners from business and politics,” said Armin Schnettler, EVP
for New Energy Business at Siemens Energy. “With Haru Oni, we’re bringing our
power-to-X technologies to the global market. We’re jointly developing and
realising the world’s first integrated and commercial large-scale plant for
producing synthetic, climate-neutral fuels. In southern Chile, we’re implementing
one of the energy industry’s most exciting projects for the future and driving
forward the decarbonisation of the mobility sector. It means we’re making an
important and rapidly effective contribution to reducing CO2 emissions
in the traffic and transport sector.”
Construction begins on Haru Oni, the world’s first integrated commercial plant for producing CO2-neutral fuel in Chile
The sports car manufacturer Porsche initiated the
demonstration project and will be using the eFuels in its own combustion engine
vehicles. Michael Steiner, Member of the Executive Board for Research and
Development at Porsche AG, said: “Porsche was founded with pioneering spirit.
That’s what drives us, we thrive on innovation. We also see ourselves as
pioneers when it comes to renewable fuels, and we want to drive development
forward. This fits in with our clear overall sustainability strategy. It means
that Porsche as a whole will have a CO2 neutral balance sheet as
early as 2030. Fuels produced with renewable energy can make a contribution to
this. Our icon, the 911, is particularly suitable for the use of eFuels. But so
are our much-loved historic vehicles, because around 70 percent of all
Porsches ever built are still on the road today. Our tests with renewable fuels
are going very successfully. eFuels will make it possible to reduce fossil CO2
emissions in combustion engines by up to 90 percent. Among other
things, we’ll be using the first fuel from Chile in our Porsche Mobil 1
Supercup race cars from 2022.”
Chile has set itself ambitious targets as part of its
National Green Hydrogen Strategy. It plans an electrolyser capacity of
5 gigawatts (GW) by 2025, rising to 25 GW by 2030. The aim is to
produce the world’s cheapest hydrogen and develop the country into a leading
exporter of green hydrogen and its derivatives.
The Haru Oni project takes advantage of the perfect
climatic conditions for wind energy in Magallanes province in southern Chile to
produce the CO2-neutral fuel using low-cost green wind power. In the
first step, electrolysers split water into oxygen and green hydrogen using wind
power. CO2 is then filtered from the air and combined with the green
hydrogen to produce synthetic methanol, which in turn is converted into eFuel.
The pilot plant is scheduled to start production in mid-2022. In addition to
Siemens Energy, Porsche and HIF, Enel, ExxonMobil, Gasco and ENAP are participating
in the Haru Oni project.
The picture shows the landscape in Patagonia, Chile, where the Haru Oni pilot plant is being built
For this press release
Follow us on Twitter
Siemens Energy is one of the world’s leading energy technology companies. The company works with its customers and partners on energy systems for the future, thus supporting the transition to a more sustainable world. With its portfolio of products, solutions and services, Siemens Energy covers almost the entire energy value chain – from power generation and transmission to storage. The portfolio includes conventional and renewable energy technology, such as gas and steam turbines, hybrid power plants operated with hydrogen, and power generators and transformers. More than 50 percent of the portfolio has already been decarbonized. A majority stake in the listed company Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy (SGRE) makes Siemens Energy a global market leader for renewable energies. An estimated one-sixth of the electricity generated worldwide is based on technologies from Siemens Energy. Siemens Energy employs more than 90,000 people worldwide in more than 90 countries and generated revenue of around €27.5 billion in fiscal year 2020.