Porsche has joined a group of investors in a $260 million equity investment in a firm that is developing a gasoline alternative powered by wind energy.
Porsche will pay $75 million for a 12.5% interest in electric-fuel producer HIF Global, the firm announced Wednesday.
Beginning in mid-year, HIF will construct a plant in Chile to create electricity-based synthetic fuels from hydrogen and carbon dioxide using wind energy.
HIF Global aims to invest $50 billion in 12 commercial sites in Texas, Chile, and Australia to create 150,000 barrels of gasoline per day using 25 gigawatts of renewable energy and approximately 25 million tonnes of carbon dioxide per year, HIF Global Executive Director Meg Gentle said in an interview.
Additionally, the startup received funding from funds controlled by EIG Global Energy Partners, Baker Hughes, and Chile’s largest shareholder Andes Mining & Energy, according to a second statement.
Gemstone Investments, Gentle’s family office, also invested. Michael Steiner, a Porsche executive board member, and Blair Thomas, chairman and chief executive officer of EIG, have both joined the HIF Global board of directors.
Porsche has been investing in alternative fuels to power future models such as the classic 911 sports vehicle, which the automaker intends to continue offering with a combustion engine.
Over the next decade, the Volkswagen Group brand will invest more than 1 billion euros ($1.1 billion) in alternative energy sources like as solar panels, wind turbines, and e-fuels.