Chile inaugurates first heavy-duty hydrogen refueling station at Quilicura

Walmart Chile and Copec opened Chile’s first hydrogen refueling station built for high-tonnage trucks at the Quilicura distribution center on 30 September 2026, according to Walmart Chile. The facility ties onsite green hydrogen production to a pilot operated by Marval Clean Logistics under the Hidrohaul technological program.

Key Facts

• Location: Avenida Presidente Eduardo Frei Montalva 8301 in Quilicura, Metropolitan Region (SEC authorization)
• Pilot fleet: Two hydrogen fuel-cell trucks operated by Marval Clean Logistics (Walmart Chile)
• Refueling time: ~20 minutes for an empty tank; estimated range >600 km (Walmart Chile)
• Finance: 3.25 billion CLP public co-financing; ~5.8 billion CLP total contributions (Corfo)
• Technology: Onsite alkaline water electrolysis plant feeding high-pressure dispensing (Walmart Chile)

New Heavy-Truck Hydrolinera in Quilicura

Quilicura is a mixed district. It has grown fast and counts 205,624 residents per the 2024 census, the Biblioteca del Congreso Nacional reports. That context — residential expansion next to logistics activity — shapes where pilots land and why. The new station extends Walmart’s green-hydrogen ecosystem into long-haul freight.

The Superintendencia de Electricidad y Combustibles (SEC) authorized the project as a special hydrogen installation under Chile’s developing regulatory framework, the regulator states. Copec built the station, drawing on decades of fuel distribution experience, while Walmart Chile provided the site and surplus hydrogen from its 2023 industrial plant developed with ENGIE.

Integration with Existing Green Hydrogen Production

Walmart Chile’s Quilicura facility began producing green hydrogen via alkaline water electrolysis in 2023, initially serving material-handling equipment, Walmart Chile says. The electrolyzer splits water into hydrogen and oxygen using an alkaline electrolyte and renewable electricity, yielding emissions-free fuel at the point of production, Walmart Chile explains.

Hydrogen is compressed and stored onsite before feeding the heavy-truck dispenser. According to Walmart Chile, this setup demonstrates vertical integration of hydrogen production and hydrogen infrastructure from the electrolyzer to the dispenser, a model for potential replication.

Pilot Operation and Technical Specs

The station supports an initial pilot of two hydrogen fuel-cell trucks, which Marval Clean Logistics operates on Walmart delivery routes in Santiago’s Metropolitan Region, Valparaíso and Rancagua, Marval says. A Marval driver completed the first route to a Lider store in Huechuraba after the inauguration, Walmart Chile reports.

• The dispenser communicates with vehicle systems to manage pressure and temperature throughout refueling, per Copec.
• Compressed hydrogen is delivered at pressures typical for heavy-duty fuel-cell trucks, although specific dispensing pressure and storage capacity have not been disclosed.
• The pilots test operational data on station uptime, refueling reliability, energy consumption and maintenance needs, Corfo documentation indicates.

The Hidrohaul technological program, led by Ingeniería Eléctrica IEE Ltda. with Mining3, covers multiple logistics applications including route trucks, urban last-mile freight and yard tractors, IEE reports. Quilicura is its first dedicated heavy-truck fueling installation.

Policy and Programmatic Backing

Corfo co-finances Hidrohaul, contributing 3.25 billion CLP against total project inputs of approximately 5.8 billion CLP, Corfo reports. IEE leads technical development, with Mining3 as co-executor and consortium manager.

Chile’s Ministry of Energy published its National Green Hydrogen Strategy in 2020 and updated it in 2026, alongside a 2023–2030 action plan that highlights heavy road freight as a priority market, according to the ministry. Quilicura fits this roadmap by generating domestic hydrogen demand, training skilled operators and refining safety practices ahead of broader regulation.

Environmental Outlook

Walmart Chile estimates the pilot could avoid around 380 tonnes of CO₂ annually, though it qualifies this as an internal projection without third-party validation. The company notes that upstream emissions depend on the electricity mix, equipment manufacture, compression, storage and water usage, factors that will inform full lifecycle analysis.

Challenges and Next Steps

Partners stress that two trucks offer early insights but do not constitute commercial proof. High capital expenditure, hydrogen supply costs, station utilization and vehicle total cost of ownership remain key barriers, Walmart Chile acknowledges.

Walmart Chile has proposed expanding at its El Peñón distribution center: a new electrolyzer, higher storage capacity and the deployment of up to ten trucks from 2028 are in the plan, Walmart Chile says. That expansion will hinge on pilot results and on how regulations evolve under Chile’s national hydrogen framework.

Historical Context

The Quilicura site has hosted a sequence of hydrogen demonstrations in the run-up to this heavy-truck station. In 2023, Walmart and ENGIE inaugurated a plant for industrial green hydrogen use in material-handling equipment, Walmart Chile states. In early 2024, the company, in partnership with Marval Clean Logistics, introduced a hydrogen-powered long-distance truck under public-road certification. Later in 2025, the site enabled hydrogen refueling for a bus in Santiago’s RED public transport system, according to Walmart Chile and Copec. These steps paved the way for today’s hydrolinera.

Regulatory and Safety Considerations

Chile’s hydrogen framework currently relies on project-specific authorizations while comprehensive safety rules are drafted, according to the SEC. The regulator emphasizes rigorous technical review on a case-by-case basis, evaluating hydrogen storage, compression, dispenser design, leak detection and emergency response protocols. Each new station requires SEC authorization and registration before operation, the regulator states. The Quilicura installation benefitted from this approach, though partners anticipate that a finalized hydrogen safety standard could streamline future deployments.

Future Market Outlook

Industry observers note that a mixed-energy approach may emerge in heavy trucking. Battery-electric vehicles could serve shorter urban or regional routes. Hydrogen fuel-cell trucks, by contrast, are seen as better suited to longer or high-utilization corridors. This view aligns with Chile’s export ambitions for green hydrogen: domestic pilots like Quilicura can reduce coordination barriers and train a workforce ahead of large-scale production and international shipping. According to Corfo, pilot data from Quilicura will inform investment decisions and regulatory roadmaps, shaping potential expansion across distribution centers, ports and mining operations.

Looking Ahead

The inauguration marks a milestone in Chile’s staged hydrogen experiment: from material handling to long-distance heavy freight. Data from Quilicura will be critical to assessing whether hydrogen fuel-cell trucks can scale in hard-to-electrify transport segments across Chile.