Page 13 - LatAmOil Week 18 2021

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Fundacion Chile hopes to secure contributions capacity to support 25 GW of electrolysis and
from mining companies seeking to phase out turn out green hydrogen at the lowest prices in
use of diesel fuel and other potential off-takers, the world by 2030.
he said. The government is currently working to
Chile has the potential to become a major promote investment in electrolysis and green
player in green hydrogen production, which hydrogen production. It is slated to pay out up
involves using electricity from renewable gen- to $50mn worth of subsidies this year to compa-
eration facilities to electrolyse water. nies involved in these activities. They have also
Officials in Santiago have said that the declared that Chile must become carbon-neu-
country has enough solar and wind generation tral by 2050. ™

ECUADOR
Sycar wraps up permit process

for LNG project in Ecuador

US-BASED Sycar revealed recently that it had port in El Oro Province. The project will encom-
completed the process of obtaining permits for pass the installation of a floating storage and
its small-scale LNG project in Ecuador. regasification unit (FSRU) with a capacity of
According to a company statement, this mile- 400,000 tonnes per year (tpy), as well as the con-
stone was reached last month, when Ecuador’s struction of port facilities capable of accommo-
Ministry of Environment and Water gave final dating such a vessel.
approval to Sycar’s environmental impact study. Sycar has yet to make a final investment deci-
This will allow the company to move forward, sion (FID) on the project, but it has said it wants
once it provides the Ecuadorean government to wrap up financing arrangements this year and
with “proof of payment of the environmental bring the FSRU on stream in 2022. The terminal
licence tax and the certificate of environmental will then be able to make regasified LNG availa-
coverage toward the issuance of the environ- ble for delivery to domestic consumers, includ-
mental licence,” the statement said. ing thermal power plants (TPPs) and industrial
Sycar characterised the ministry’s decision as facilities in the southern part of the country.
a positive development, saying it was now mov- One of its first customers is expected to be
ing closer to launching the LNG scheme. the Machala TPP, a natural gas-burning station
“This final milestone maintains the project located in Bajo Alto near the port. Sycar has also
on track with the original schedule, giving a said it wants to build a truck filling station at the
positive sign to Ecuadorian industrial custom- port so that it can supply LNG to transportation
ers of the future ample availability of LNG vol- companies.
umes beyond the domestic offer,” it said in its Eventually the company may also build an
statement. onshore LNG storage depot near the terminal.
The company has said it wants to establish an This would allow it to supply larger volumes of
LNG import terminal at Bajo Alto, a sheltered gas to the local market. ™

Syvcar’s FSRU will have a capacity of 400,000 tpy (Image: Sycar)

Week 18 06•May•2021 www. NEWSBASE .com P13