Challenges

Countries in Latin America and the Caribbean face rising energy demands and high dependency on fossil fuels, compounded by climate change. Although endowed with rich geothermal potential and emerging interest in green hydrogen, El Salvador and Honduras lacked the regulatory frameworks, technical expertise, and enabling environments necessary to harness these clean energy sources. At the same time, Colombia had made strides in hydrogen regulation and policy development, and Germany possessed extensive know-how in geothermal and hydrogen technology. The GeoH?Verde project was created to bridge these gaps through triangular cooperation. It aims to transfer knowledge, support diagnostics, and promote capacity building to lay the groundwork for green hydrogen and geothermal energy markets, while enhancing South-South exchange. The involvement of UNEP as a UN partner adds a layer of global environmental insight and technical support, enhancing the quality and reach of outcomes.

Toward a Solution

GeoH?Verde exemplifies a dynamic triangular cooperation initiative that leverages country-specific strengths to foster energy transition in Latin America. It brings together Colombia, El Salvador, and Honduras in a South-South partnership, with Germany as the facilitating partner and UNEP (PNUMA) as an international technical partner. The project’s primary objective is to build capacities, enhance regulatory readiness, and foster the adoption of green hydrogen and geothermal energy technologies.

The initiative is rooted in national policy commitments—El Salvador and Honduras’ 2020–2050 energy plans and Colombia’s Hydrogen Roadmap and Geothermal Law. Recognizing shared challenges in decarbonization, the countries created a space for public-private collaboration, knowledge sharing, and technical standardization. GeoH?Verde operates through four main components: (1) Capacity development; (2) Regulatory diagnostics; (3) Normative exchanges; and (4) Pre -feasibility studies for pilot projects.

To date, the project has trained over 150 professionals through both in-person and virtual modalities, including a regionally accredited MOOC on green hydrogen. Delegates from all countries participated in study tours: in Cartagena, Colombia (H2 LAC Summit and hydrogen field visits), and in El Salvador (GEOLAC conference and geothermal field visits). These exchanges enabled not just technical transfer but policy benchmarking and institutional relationship-building.

UNEP’s participation strengthened the environmental integrity and diagnostic components. Together with national actors, they produced barrier assessments and strategy proposals for green hydrogen in El Salvador and Honduras, including legal, technical, and investment-related aspects. These documents are shaping emerging national roadmaps and frameworks for hydrogen development.

The initiative also facilitated direct engagement with the private sector, including HOLCIM and ARGOS, both, part of the cement industry, for potential pilot implementation. Pre -feasibility studies for hydrogen production and geothermal energy mapping are underway, supported by GIZ and the Colombian  Geological Service, National Hidrocarbons Agency, ECOPETROL and the Colombian Ministry of Mines and Energy.

GeoH?Verde’s innovation lies not only in the thematic novelty of hydrogen-geothermal integration but also in the model of cooperation. Each partner contributes a specific expertise: Colombia offers regulatory and pilot project experience, El Salvador and Honduras bring geothermal development and emerging hydrogen agendas, Germany provides facilitation and methodology, and UNEP integrates environmental standards and global best practices. This multidirectional flow of knowledge, anchored in mutual respect, is a hallmark of successful triangular cooperation.

Moreover, the project emphasizes institutional anchoring: national ministries, energy regulators, universities, and industry groups are all involved. This ensures that capacity development is systemic and sustained, not isolated to project cycles. Regional platforms like SICA and SICREEE are being engaged to replicate tools such as the Favorability Mapping Tool for geothermal energy.

By 2025, the project aims to finalize at least two pre-feasibility studies for green hydrogen and geothermal use, produce a strategy paper for hydrogen rollout, and institutionalize cross-country technical exchanges. Lessons learned are being documented for replication across Latin America.

GeoH?Verde shows that with the right partners and a strategic focus, South-South and triangular cooperation can catalyze systemic change in renewable energy and climate action sectors. It bridges policy, science, and practice while anchoring energy transition in national and regional agendas.