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Paper short abstract

Green hydrogen is seen as key to global decarbonization, yet global progress lags behind expectations. Chile, early adopted its strategy and announced 83 projects so far, appears as frontrunner, but remains at the planning stage. The paper analyzes three competing sociotechnical imaginaries.

Paper long abstract

In the early 2020s, green hydrogen emerged as one of the most promising solutions for global decarbonization. The EU’s aspirations to achieve climate neutrality by 2050 consider green hydrogen as key element to decarbonize carbon-intensive industries. Internationally, however, implementation has progressed more slowly than anticipated, and growth has fallen short of the high expectations raised at the beginning of the decade.

Chile entered the global green hydrogen debate at an early stage and became the first South American country to adopt a national green hydrogen strategy in 2020. Since then, 83 projects have been officially announced, positioning Chile among the frontrunners, at least on paper. Yet, green hydrogen is frequently described in media and scientific reports as an “apuesta” (bet), suggesting it to become more of a gamble than a strategic driver for economic development. Across the literature, there is broad agreement that green hydrogen remains a technology limited to plans rather than concrete realisation.

Taking this as a starting point, this paper analyzes the sociotechnical imaginaries (Jasanoff & Kim 2015) surrounding green hydrogen in Chile. Based on expert interviews conducted in Chile in March/April 2026 as well as document and newspaper analysis, the findings reveal three competing imaginaries: a future optimistic market and technology leadership imaginary, an energy transition imaginary that overlooks social-ecological impacts and a social-ecological transformation imaginary that emphasizes sustainability and justice.

By exploring these imaginaries, the paper shows the diverging and contesting visions that take place at the same time and shape Chile’s green hydrogen future.