CAP Acero Huachipato steel plant — Chile

CAP Acero Huachipato steel plant is a steel plant in Chile. Its listed capacity is 1,085,519 t of steel. Steel plants burn coal in blast furnaces or use electric arcs to melt scrap; in both cases the molten metal must be kept above 1,500°C and transferred through extensive hot piping and vessels. It is operated by Compania Siderurgica Huachipato SA. By capacity it ranks #1 among 2 steel plants in Chile. It emits about 947,868 t CO₂e a year from Climate TRACE. That is 12% of the CO₂e from the 20 facilities in Chile that have an emissions figure in IndustryAtlas. Its CO₂ per unit of capacity is 6% below the national median for this sector.

Facility data: Climate TRACE v6 (asset-level capacity & CO₂e, CC BY 4.0), id ct-1566477.

In context: how this facility compares

At 1,085,519 t of steel, CAP Acero Huachipato steel plant is around the median steel plant in Chile (1,085,519 t of steel). Subsector: iron-and-steel. As steel plant, it requires high process heat (typically 800–1500°C) for its core industrial operations, supplied by boilers, furnaces or direct combustion. Steel plants burn coal in blast furnaces or use electric arcs to melt scrap; in both cases the molten metal must be kept above 1,500°C and transferred through extensive hot piping and vessels.

Capacity & CO₂-intensity comparison computed from Climate TRACE industrial facilities data; sector role based on engineering reference.

What 947,868 t CO₂e a year looks like

This facility's estimated annual CO₂e (Climate TRACE, modelled) in everyday equivalents from the US EPA Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies calculator:

Equivalencies: US EPA Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies. Emissions: Climate TRACE.

Capacity vs largest steel plants in Chile

Listed capacity (t of steel), Climate TRACE v6 (asset-level capacity & CO₂e, CC BY 4.0).

Operator

Operated by Compania Siderurgica Huachipato SA.

Local climate

CAP Acero Huachipato steel plant sits in a warm-summer Mediterranean climate zone (Köppen Csb), at 36.7°S in the southern hemisphere.

Köppen zone: Köppen-Geiger world climate classification (Kottek et al. 2006, 0.5° grid).

Site climate & environmental severity

This site sits in an aggressive, high-corrosion environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C5 — Very high), with marine salt corrosion the leading environmental stress.

In this site’s local climate, a bare 150 °C surface sheds about 1375 W/m² to ambient — roughly 1.06× the loss at a 20 °C reference. Reference-surface calculation at a 150 °C surface from WorldClim climate normals (ASTM C680 / ISO 12241) — an indicative per-climate comparison, not a measurement of this site’s specific equipment. Open method dataset: DOI 10.5281/zenodo.20787408 (CC BY 4.0).

Indicative estimate via the ISO 9223:2012 informative method (atmospheric corrosivity from temperature, time-of-wetness and airborne salinity), using WorldClim climate normals, the Köppen-Geiger class and coast distance. Indicative, not a measured corrosion rate.

How it compares & nearby sites

The #1 largest of 2 steel plants in Chile by listed capacity (Climate TRACE).

Nearby industrial sites

• Talcahuano Cement Plant · Cement Plant · 17,991 t CO₂
• ENAP Bio-Bio Refinery · Refinery · 1,283,437 t CO₂
• Celulosa Arauco y Constitución - Arauco Pulp Mill · Pulp & Paper Mill · 989,562 t CO₂
• Nueva Aldea pulp · Pulp & Paper Mill · 837,321 t CO₂
• CMPC Celulosa S.A. - Laja Mill · Pulp & Paper Mill · 65,971 t CO₂
• CMPC Celulosa S.A. Sante Fe · Pulp & Paper Mill · 332,391 t CO₂

Location

Coordinates -36.7477, -73.12749. View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions