MHI Signs MoU with Chile’s Guacolda Energía for Feasibility Study of Ammonia Co-Firing at a Coal-Fired Thermal Power Plant
-- Two-Phase Study through 2026 to Produce Detailed Plan for Demonstration of 30% Co-Firing --

Tokyo, December 7, 2022 - Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI), on December 6, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Guacolda Energía SpA, an independent power producer (IPP) in the Republic of Chile, to begin a feasibility study for the introduction of ammonia co-firing at a coal-fired thermal power plant operated by the company in the north of the country. The project is being undertaken in response to the global trend toward reducing CO₂ emissions.

The signing ceremony was held at the Nagasaki Shipyard & Machinery Works in Japan, the base for MHI’s steam power plant business. The executive team from Guacolda was led by Chairman Jorge Rodríguez, with MHI represented by Masahiko Hokano, Head of the Steam Power Maintenance Innovation (SPMI) Business Division.

The power plant that will be the site of the study is located in Huasco, Atacama Region, approximately 700 km north of the capital city of Santiago. The plant comprises five power generation units with a total output of 758 megawatts (MW). MHI supplied the boiler, steam turbine, and other core facilities for this plant.

Under the feasibility study plan based on the MoU, MHI, with support from its power solutions brand Mitsubishi Power, will determine and conduct a study of supplying the ammonia burners and other boiler facilities and equipment necessary for ammonia co-firing. Phase 1, through 2024, will be a basic study for 30% ammonia co-firing to identify the problems involved. Phase 2, from 2025 to 2026, will be to consider solutions to the problems identified in Phase 1, and compile a detailed plan for demonstration of 30% ammonia co-firing. In the future, Guacolda aims to conduct demonstration testing at the plant and increase the co-firing rate.

Chile has set a target for carbon neutrality by 2050 and plans to increasingly incorporate non-conventional renewable energy sources into the Chilean electricity matrix. As a country with abundant renewable energy resources, Chile is considered to have high potential as a producer of green ammonia, and Guacolda is looking to ammonia co-firing as a means of cutting CO₂ emissions and reducing its environmental load in order to maintain operations at its power plant. MHI’s position as the supplier of the core facilities of this power plant, and a leader in ammonia co-firing technologies, led to the conclusion of this MoU.

Commenting on the signing of the MoU, Guacolda Chairman Jorge Rodríguez said: “A rational policy to reduce greenhouse gases should consider a gradual withdrawal from the use of fossil fuels, combining them with more climate-friendly energies such as green hydrogen, green ammonia and long-term storage technologies, in the most economical way possible but always safeguard the safety of the electrical system as a whole.”

Masahiko Hokano, Head of the SPMI Business Division at MHI said: “We are very honored to be able to proceed with this feasibility study on ammonia co-firing in Chile, which is highly proactive in decarbonization efforts and has great expectations from the world in terms of renewable energy and clean fuel derived from it. By combining MHI's innovative ammonia co-firing technology with Guacolda's deep technical knowledge and power plant management know-how, we are confident that we can contribute to the further acceleration of decarbonization in Guacolda, and consequently in Chile.”

Going forward, building on the conclusion of this MoU, MHI will work offer the solutions for decarbonization and improved performance needed by IPPs and the entire power generation industry around the world, and will make a concerted effort to successfully complete this feasibility study, contributing to the stable supply of energy and the reducing of environmental loads.