This week EU Energy Commissioner Kadri Simson visited Chile and Argentina to step up cooperation with these two countries in the energy field, with a specific focus on renewables and hydrogen.
On July 1-2, Simson visited Chile to strengthen cooperation in green transition and renewable energies. Simson’s official visit was part of the ratification process of the Advanced Framework Agreement with Chile. The representative held discussions with government authorities, business leaders, and academics regarding Europe’s global investment agenda Global Gateway, emphasizing advancements in Chile’s production of renewable energies, green hydrogen, and critical raw materials, the EU delegation to Chile said in a press release.
“Energy cooperation between the EU and Chile has a strong foundation, reinforced through the Advanced Framework Agreement, which has a strong energy chapter. We want to maintain this strong connection with Chile through our Global Gateway investment agenda, where Hydrogen is one priority area, as reflected on the Team Europe Initiative on Renewable Hydrogen,” Simson said. “We discussed with the Minister how this Initiative contributes to the recently launched Green Hydrogen action Plan. We also discussed how to expand cooperation on clean power production and on electricity grids, storage and interconnection,” she added.
On July 1 in Santiago, the Commissioner met with Energy Minister Diego Pardow and CORFO’s Executive Vice President José Miguel Benavente. They discussed the ways to deepen the cooperation on energy between the EU and Chile, especially on hydrogen.
For his part, Pardow noted that Chile and the EU share common objectives. “The energy transition must be an opportunity to have a fairer society, which allows for cleaner cities but also quality jobs and greater investment for our countries. I thank Commissioner Simson for her visit to our country because we have been able to deepen our joint work on issues such as green hydrogen and storage,” he added.
In addition, the visit included meetings with representatives of the public and private sector in the field of renewable energies. These dialogues addressed both best practices and lessons learned in the EU to address similar obstacles, such as the complexities of the green hydrogen market and the need to safeguard investments in this emerging sector.
On July 2, the event at ECLAC’s Santiago headquarters, which brought together experts around the panel discussion: “Navigating the Just Energy Transition: Green hydrogen as a catalyst for sustainable development in Latin America and the Caribbean,” facilitated the exchange of ideas and proposals to promote the use of renewable hydrogen as a driver of a just energy transition in Latin America and the Caribbean. At this meeting, Simson and Pardow were accompanied by ECLAC’s Executive Secretary, José Manuel Salazar-Xirinachs, and representatives of the private sector and academia.
The advantages of #LAC for the energy transition and green hydrogen are enormous. We enjoy a large endowment of natural resources and have the most renewable electricity mix in the world (65%), with high potential for renewable sources including solar and wind: @JoseMSalazarX. pic.twitter.com/uEH2Phk227
— ECLAC (@eclac_un) July 1, 2024
In the meeting with the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Alberto Van Klaveren, Simson referred to the close collaboration in energy matters between the EU and Chile, which is based on the exchange of knowledge, the implementation of joint projects and the promotion of the development of renewable energies. This was a valuable opportunity to discuss the Advanced Framework Agreement and its energy chapter and to explore opportunities for collaboration in this field.
For his part, Van Klaveren stated: “We greatly appreciate the visit of the European Commissioner for Energy to Chile, with whom we discussed the various possibilities that the Advanced Framework Agreement between Chile and the European Union provides us. We hope to ratify this agreement soon to continue strengthening cooperation in the fields of renewable energies, just energy transition, and green hydrogen. Chile and the EU have a broad path ahead to continue working closely in this area.”
Simson concluded her visit to Chile with a tour of Viña Santa Ema, which was one of the winners of the “Ponle Energía a tu Empresa” contest, co-financed by the EU through the Mitigation Action Facility and implemented by the Chilean Ministry of Energy. This initiative financed the implementation of renewable energy self-consumption systems with partial financing. This recognition allowed the company to install solar panels with a positive impact on the environment and the company’s competitiveness. During the visit to the vineyard, the Commissioner highlighted the relevance of international cooperation to promote the development of green opportunities in the business sector.
EU and Argentina agree to work on a roadmap to implement energy MoUs
Simson plans to spend the rest of the week in Buenos Aires where she co-chaired the EU-Argentina High-Level Energy Dialogue alongside Secretary of Energy Eduardo Rodríguez Chirillo on July 3. “I shared good results achieved with the EU Green Deal and REPowerEU. Clean energy transition also needs a network of partnership. For the EU, Argentina is one such relationship,” Simson wrote on X.
Also on July 3, Simson participated with Chirillo in a dialogue on the energy transition and green hydrogen at the German-Argentine Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Buenos Aires. “We agreed to work on a roadmap to implement EU and Argentina energy MoUs. The momentum is there to take our cooperation to next level!” Simson wrote on X.
On June 13, 2023, EU and Argentina signed an MoU to cooperate in the lithium sector. The MoU calls for greater cooperation in green infrastructure as well as new research into raw materials such as lithium and ultra-light battery metals for electric vehicles. Argentina reportedly has the world’s third-largest lithium reserves, with an estimated lithium supply of 17 million tons. Lithium is one of the critical raw materials listed by the EU under the Critical Raw Materials Act.
I co-chaired 🇪🇺🇦🇷High Level energy dialogue with Secretary of Energy Eduardo Chirillo today in Buenos Aires. We agreed to work on a roadmap to implement 🇪🇺&🇦🇷 energy MoUs. The momentum is there to take our cooperation to next level! pic.twitter.com/OvAG6XDL1g
— Kadri Simson (@KadriSimson) July 3, 2024
During her stay in Argentina, Simson will meet bilaterally with the Minister for Finance, Luis Caputo, and the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Diana Mondino, as well as representatives of the European companies in the energy sector and Eurocámara Argentina. A visit to the Sustenta-Vitis sustainability project supported by AL INVEST Verde is also foreseen.
