The initial findings of the study to ascertain the feasibility of the development of a green hydrogen valley in Chile’s central zone are “very promising”, Anglo American Chile CEO Patricio Hidalgo has reported.

Speaking during Anglo’s half-yearly sustainability performance update, Hidalgo told webinar attendees that the Anglo-supported study pointed to key areas in the South American country’s central region having the potential to displace around 3 000 kilotons of CO2 a year.

Through a private and public partnership, Anglo had, he said, also supported the design and construction of the first hydrogen bus made in Chile, as part of the Johannesburg- and London-listed company's shift to sustainable transport.

“While we acknowledge that lots needs to happen to build the ecosystem to enable green hydrogen at scale, the initial findings are very promising,” he said while displaying a picture of the bus made by startup Reborn Electric.

The recent studies in Chile and Peru follow on from the work done by Anglo in South Africa, where solar and wind resources, as well as access to the platinum group metals needed for converting hydrogen into energy, have positioned the country to capitalise on green hydrogen and become an important centre for green hydrogen production.

At the same time, Chile is said to have the renewable-energy potential to install 70 times its current electricity generation capacity. “This abundant renewable energy will enable us to become the cheapest producer of green hydrogen on Earth,” former Chile Energy Minister Juan Carlos Jobet is quoted as saying.

Anglo already uses 100% renewable energy across its South American operations and the related green hydrogen thrust was among the update’s deep dives, which brought to life how sustainability is adding value for shareholders by facilitating mining growth.

“Sustainability is fundamental to our ability to establish ourselves as a preferred partner for our future growth,” Anglo CE Duncan Wanblad said.

“It’s critical for value creation through both enhancing operational performance and unlocking new growth options,” Anglo strategy and sustainability director Helena Nonka said during the update covered by Engineering News & Mining Weekly.

“Sustainability can be and should be profitable, and this is why we embedded sustainability into our strategy and value creation model across the organisation, from board decision-making to day-to-day operational activities.

“On climate, we have delivered absolute reductions in Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions of 26% relative to peak emissions in 2019. On water, we are 22% below our 2015 baseline for freshwater usage. Through our socioeconomic development progress, we’ve supported over 140 000 jobs outside of our mines,” Nonka outlined.