SANTIAGO, Nov 7 (Reuters) - Industry insiders are

worried Chile is falling behind the global green hydrogen race

despite having a head-start due to its strong renewable energy

matrix and geographic advantage to export to Asian markets.

In a panel about energy transition in Santiago, companies

betting billions on green hydrogen in the Andean nation said

lengthy permitting and a lack of infrastructure, mainly ports

and energy transmission, are holding the industry back while

other countries are charging ahead.

"We had a three, four year head start compared to the rest

of the world in implementing these projects, but today that's

down to months," said Mario Marchese, project director for HNH

Energy an $11 billion green hydrogen project in Chile's

Patagonia.

"We're in a race to see who gets first to markets first,"

Marchese said. "And every day that window is closing and we're

losing that war."

HNH Energy, backed by AustriaEnergy, Okowind and Copenhagen

Infrastructure Partners, aims to produce 1.3 megatons of ammonia

and 270,000 tons of hydrogen a year with a 1.4 Gigawatt wind

farm. It's one of the largest green hydrogen projects in the

world and the largest investment to go through Chile's

environmental permitting process.

"We've spent four years preparing the environmental permit,

we've spent dozens of millions of dollars to get to this stage

and we still have a long road to go," Marchese said, adding that

the permitting has been the most challenging part of the project

and they hope to sign construction contracts in the first half

of 2027.

Marchese noted that Australia is racing to reach Asian

markets first and Brazil is also emerging as a global

competitor.

Katherine Orozco, project development manager for EDF Chile,

a subsidiary of France's EDF that has a $2 billion investment

plan, said Chile's abundance of solar energy in its northern

desert regions and wind energy in the Patagonian south, along

with coastal proximity, gave it a big advantage over other

countries in Latin America.

"When it comes to hydrogen, 60 or 70 percent of the cost is

from electrical costs from renewable," Orozco said. "That's what

should give us an advantage against the rest of the world, so we

shouldn't lose that."

Orozco said that one of the biggest challenges she sees is a

lack of electrical transmission lines and ports to export green

hydrogen. Brazil, she noted, has already started developing

ports, giving it an advantage over Chile.

Both Orozco and Marchese noted that the government is aiding

in public-private investment and two bills aimed at speeding up

permits, but both have been delayed in congress.