To ensure meaningful local community engagement, the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), ENERTRAG SE and Colombia’s Colibri Energy are launching a public‑private partnership under the International Hydrogen Ramp-up Programme (H2Uppp) to develop and test strategies for the inclusion of e.g. indigenous communities during the planning processes of large-scale hydrogen and power-to-X projects. The aim is to reduce social and permitting risks during the planning, construction and operation phases by integrating robust participation mechanisms from the outset.
The partnership combines complementary strengths: ENERTRAG contributes experience from developing utility‑scale H2/PtX projects in rural contexts; Colibri brings on‑the‑ground dialogue and inclusion know‑how from Colombia’s La Guajira; GIZ acts as a neutral broker and draws on governance insights from global initiatives, including adjacent sectors such as mining.
Two Latin American project types will serve as pilots
In Uruguay, the advanced e‑methanol project Tambor will be used to systematically capture local perceptions in cooperation with neutral actors such as universities, translating findings into communication and participation measures. GIZ will support collaboration with local universities and help design engagement activities.
In Colombia, the ammonia project “Waawaata” in La Guajira — one of Colombia’s most promising regions for export‑oriented hydrogen, with exceptional wind and solar resources — will focus on co‑developing participation mechanisms with indigenous communities. The project partners will conduct a structured needs assessment of indigenous groups and, in parallel, commission supporting analyses on infrastructure, transport corridors and renewable power supply for site selection. GIZ and Colibri will facilitate knowledge exchange and capacity building locally and contribute to site‑selection analyses.
About H2Uppp
The International Hydrogen Ramp-up Programme (H2Uppp) is supporting entrepreneurial engagement in the ramping-up of hydrogen in the Global South and is a funding programme of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy and is implemented by GIZ.
