Foreign investment in Chile reaches record figure: reached US$ 56.234 billion driven by H2V
According to figures provided by InvestChile, the Energy sector was the one that concentrated the most investment projects last year, the United States was the main country of origin of the investing companies.
InvestChile reported that the portfolio of foreign investment projects supported by the agency during 2024 reached US$ 56.234 billion, the highest figure since the Agency's creation. The amount, which represents a rise of 68% compared to 2023, is associated with 474 projects from foreign companies at different stages of development and the creation of more than 21,000 potential direct jobs.
Of the total amount, US$ 14.460 billion correspond to investment in materialization (initiatives that are already in place and in the development stage in the country). The 113 projects corresponding to this stage generated 4,605 formal and quality job positions.
The director of the Foreign Investment Promotion Agency, Karla Flores, indicated that the increase is largely explained by projects related to the green hydrogen industry, which totaled US$ 25,617 at the end of last year.
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"Chile has committed to becoming a significant player internationally on issues of green hydrogen, with an international promotional strategy in key markets and opportunities highlighting our privileged conditions for producing a clean and sustainable fuel, which is essential in combating climate change worldwide. These figures bear witness to the success of this commitment and the work of the Agency, as well as the consolidation of our country's leadership in sectors such as Mining and Technological Infrastructure," said Flores, who also particularly highlighted the job creation related to InvestChile's work.
"The potential creation of more than 20,000 direct and permanent jobs is concrete proof of the contribution of foreign companies to our economy, which directly benefits the people of Chile," he assured.
For the Minister of Economy, Nicolás Grau, the aforementioned serves to confirm that Chile offers attractive conditions and investment opportunities linked to energy transition and climate change mitigation, which have confirmed the interest of foreign companies. "Chile continues to stand out as an attractive investment hub in Latin America and, together with InvestChile, we are working to bring in companies that contribute to economic development throughout the country".
It should be noted that of the total investment contained in the InvestChile portfolio, 88% (equivalent to US$ 49.468 billion) corresponds to projects located outside the Metropolitan Region.
Sectorial Performance
Foreign companies supported by InvestChile focused their investments primarily in three sectors: Energy, with US$ 36.817 billion; Mining, with US$ 8.649 billion; and Global Services with US$ 5.400 billion.
In both Energy and Mining, the amount of the projects grew compared to 2023: 131% and 6% respectively.
Other sectors that saw increases in investment amounts were Infrastructure, with a rise of 130%, after reaching US$ 3.390 billion; and the Food Industry, which reached US$ 1.265 billion, marking an increase of 41% compared to 2023.
It is also interesting to note the potential job generation by sector, which at the end of 2024 was led by Global Services and Technology, with 8,325 potential jobs; this was followed by Mining with 5,882 jobs; and in third place was Energy, with 3,304 jobs. In all these sectors, potential job creation increased compared to 2023: 3% in the case of Global Services, 22% for Mining and 157% in the case of Energy.
United States at the Forefront
Regarding the countries of origin of the foreign investment projects that are part of InvestChile's portfolio, companies from the United States concentrated the highest amount, with US$ 20.510 billion. They were followed by investments from Austria with US$ 11.052 billion, while companies from Canada ranked third, with US$ 6.275 billion.
