Column by Karla Flores, director of InvestChile.
Chile and France are committed to energy transition and sustainable development. French companies see Chile as an ideal partner on this path."
This October 2024 we celebrate 140 years of relations and friendship between Chile and France, a partner of the utmost relevance for our country. With France we are united by a deep convergence of shared values around the principles of democracy and unrestricted respect for human rights. Our ties are multiple, and are manifested in all areas: social, cultural and, of course, economic.
Naturally, the strength of this alliance is also reflected in investment. We know that the expansion plans of many French companies in Latin America start in Chile, in relevant sectors such as energy, mining, agribusiness, finance and services.
The European Union as a whole is the main investor in Chile, with more than 25% of the stock of foreign direct investment in the country. Of this total, investment from France ranks seventh. We are convinced that there is room for French investment to continue to grow significantly.
For this reason, France was selected as one of the key destinations for InvestChile's promotional efforts within Europe, which was reinforced at the beginning of 2023 with the appointment of the Presidential Investment Attaché in Paris. His function, in addition to maintaining fluid and constant communication with the parent companies of French companies, is to ensure that the senior executives of these companies know that they can count on Chile as a strategic partner in the region, and as a place where the investments of the future are being developed today.
Both Chile and France are committed to energy transition and sustainable development, which makes French companies see Chile as an ideal partner on this path. Why?
Chile has a series of conditions that have made it a relevant player in the global energy transition: deserts in the north that allow the development of solar energy and the photovoltaic industry; winds in the south that have boosted wind projects, which allow us to offer clean energy at competitive prices and are transforming Chile into one of the protagonists in the green hydrogen industry, essential in the production of non-fossil fuels.
At a private level, French companies such as Total Eren, have publicly expressed their desire to invest in H2V in southern Chile, which could result in one of the largest projects worldwide so far.
It is also noteworthy the impulse that companies such as Engie are giving to the development of green energies in our country. Worldwide, ENGIE will invest between EUR$13,000 and 14,000 million in renewable energy, of which US$ 1,800 million will be invested in Chile. This amount represents about 15% of the company's investment, considering only renewable energies, which shows the company's confidence to continue progressing in our country.
French companies have also shown a strong interest in the lithium industry, another key element for the energy transition, because of its key role in the production of lithium-ion batteries, which enable the electrification of transport and the storage of renewable energies to replace internal combustion engines and thus reduce global warming emissions. emissions. It is public knowledge that the company Eramet is participating in the bidding for the association with ENAMI in Salares Alto Andino.
But our country also presents opportunities beyond its natural resources and where French companies can find new growth opportunities. Chile continues to position itself as a Digital Hub in Latin America, proof of this is the large number of foreign technology companies that have settled in the country - such as Google, Huawei, Oracle, AWS, Scala Data Centers, Ascenty and Odata - with the aim of providing assistance locally, as well as exporting their services abroad. Today, Chile is home to 22 Data Centers and another 28 are in the active process of evaluation. That is why the President of the Republic has announced the National Data Center Plan, whose objective is to accelerate investments for $2.5 billion dollars, promoting a sustainable industry, in which you are also invited to participate.
Foreign investment can act as a key tool in economic development strategies, operating as a crucial lever to make qualitative leaps in relatively short periods of time. In our country, this has made it possible to import knowledge, technologies and best practices, thus catalyzing the growth of strategic sectors and the creation of quality jobs for our people.
French companies can play an important role in the advancement of these industries in Chile, contributing with knowledge in technology and technical capital that allows an optimal development and that adapts to the needs of a clean and sustainable energy. sustainable energy that not only Chile but the whole world requires.
We want French companies, which have already found in Chile a favorable and stable environment to invest, being part of our development as a country, to continue diversifying their investment sectors in the country, pushing sophistication and progress in matters that go even beyond the commercial and involve knowledge, research and development.
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Today we invite both French companies and companies from other parts of the world to invest in Chile. To do good business and also to create new opportunities that improve the quality of life of our people, and that allow us to take a leap towards a sustainable and inclusive future, in which all of us are protagonists.
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