“Locals fear Chile’s new port project for green energy will disrupt ecosystems”, 11 July 2025
…The Chilean government has recently approved a new port project in Magallanes and the Chilean Antarctic Region, an area that recently attracted a lot of attention due to its enormous green energy potential. The port will transport infrastructure to expand green hydrogen, a colorless gas produced without fossil fuels, and allow for faster and more efficient transport of salmon from the farms in the region, said a government official.
Meanwhile, some Indigenous residents and environmental organizations are raising concerns about potential environmental impacts of the port on the region’s marine ecosystems and species, such as humpback whales.
In April, the Regional Commission for the Use of Coastal Border (CRUBC in Spanish) unanimously approved the Cabo Negro port project, proposed by the investment company Inversiones PPG SpA…
Local residents and FIMA, one of the main environmental justice NGOs in Chile, told Mongabay that they know little about the company’s plans but they are concerned about the potential environmental impacts on the region’s unique and fragile ecosystems…
…[T]he company has not yet obtained an environmental impact assessment (EIA)…
Gysling from Nortev SpA told Mongabay the environmental impacts of both the construction and operation stages will be determined in detail during the EIA. He added that the project consists of a transparent pier on piles and does not require a breakwater, so its impact on the seabed, waves and currents is “minimal compared to an opaque jetty”…
However, several organizations supporting social causes, such as sustainable social development, Indigenous rights and feminism, wrote in a public statement that green energy projects, facilitated by the construction of this port, will “exploit [their] wind, land and seawater for desalination, without national regulations and without considering our ways of life, turning Magallanes into a sacrifice zone that exports renewable energy at the expense of its people and its nature.”
According to PPG, there are no settlements within the immediate vicinity of the project and there have not been any consultations with communities yet. However, the environmental impact study (EIA) includes citizen participation opportunities “that will be implemented when appropriate,” they said in a WhatsApp message to Mongabay.
Another cause for concern is brine, a byproduct of desalination, which is often a necessary step before using seawater for green hydrogen production. It is a highly concentrated saltwater solution which has the potential to disrupt marine ecosystems if discharged directly into the sea…
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