Country refrigeration procurement brief · Chile
Industrial refrigeration and cold storage procurement in Chile
Chile is a leading exporter of cherries, grapes, blueberries, salmon and wine, with long sea routes to Asia, the USA and Europe. Pre-cooling, packhouses and port cold stores are the core of its cold chain.
Direct procurement answer
Chile is phasing down HFCs under the Kigali Amendment, implemented through Ley 20.096 and the Ministry of Environment's ozone unit. Medicine storage is supervised by the Instituto de Salud Pública (ISP), export produce and meat by SAG, and seafood by Sernapesca. Buildings and racking must follow NCh 433 seismic design.
For a cold storage project in Chile, define throughput, temperature zones, clear height, refrigerant constraints and utility capacity before requesting prices. Use one technical brief for every bidder, verify local compliance evidence and compare lifecycle cost rather than equipment price alone.
Country-specific planning priorities
The Chilean cold chain market
Export fruit and aquaculture set seasonal peaks and capacity.
- Fruit packhouses with forced-air pre-cooling in the central valleys.
- Salmon processing and frozen storage in the south (Los Lagos, Aysén).
- Port cold stores near San Antonio and Valparaíso.
Regulations
Environmental, health and export rules plus seismic design.
- HFC phase-down under Kigali; natural refrigerants reduce future risk.
- SAG and Sernapesca export certification sets hygiene and temperature records.
- NCh 433 seismic design for structure and high-bay racking.
Cost and timeline drivers
Seasonality and earthquakes shape the design.
- Peak-season capacity for fruit exports drives refrigeration sizing.
- Seismic bracing adds cost to panels, racking and piping.
- Plan construction to finish before the harvest season.
A supplier-ready procurement sequence
- 01Confirm products, daily throughput, storage duration and temperature zones.
- 02Convert demand into room layout, pallet positions, cooling duty and utility requirements.
- 03Record local permitting, refrigerant, food or pharmaceutical obligations in the same brief.
- 04Issue an identical RFQ to qualified suppliers and compare exclusions, controls, commissioning and service coverage.
- 05Complete engineering and local compliance review before contract award.
Official sources for these rules
Rules on this page are summarised from the regulators and legal texts below. Always read the current version before design or tender.
- Ozone unit — HFC phase-down under the Kigali Amendment (Ley 20.096) — Ministerio del Medio Ambiente
- Instituto de Salud Pública — storage and distribution of medicines — ISP
- Export certification for fruit, meat and seafood — SAG / Sernapesca
- NCh 433 — seismic design of buildings — INN
Links checked: 2026-09-26
Preliminary project estimate
Model the layout, insulated envelope, cooling capacity and indicative budget for Chile. The result transfers into a supplier-ready RFQ.
Preliminary cold store estimate
Enter floor area, clear height, temperature and panel material. The estimate combines layout, materials, a project brief and budget in one result.
1. Layout
2. Building materials
3. Budget
| Insulated panels | CLP 32,317,358 |
| Floor insulation / heating | CLP 6,460,000 |
| Refrigeration equipment | CLP 93,024,000 |
| Insulated doors | CLP 7,267,500 |
| Pallet racking | CLP 57,267,900 |
| Installation labour | CLP 31,335,340 |
| Electrical & controls | CLP 15,913,063 |
| Contingency (10%) | CLP 24,358,516 |
| Indicative total | CLP 267,943,677 |
4. Project brief (copy for suppliers)
Chile — Cold store, Chilled 0…+4 °C, 400 m² × 8 m clear height, PIR 100 mm panels, approx. 788 pallet positions, approx. 128 kW refrigeration. Indicative budget CLP 267,943,677. Please quote on these assumptions.
Rough planning estimate using general assumptions (40/60 W per m³, 1.9 m² per pallet position, typical panel prices). Excludes land, building shell, permits, taxes and freight. Not a quotation.
CLP · ×0.85 local cost level · INE Chile: Construction materials and labour cost indices
Get this reviewed — start an RFQQuestions buyers ask before tender
Which refrigerants can I use in Chile?
Chile is reducing HFCs under the Kigali Amendment. Ammonia and CO₂ are widely used in fruit and seafood plants. Check the Ministry of Environment's current rules.
Do export cold stores need SAG approval?
Facilities handling export fruit or meat must meet SAG requirements; seafood exporters work under Sernapesca. Requirements depend on product and destination.
How does seismic design affect a Chilean cold store?
NCh 433 sets seismic design for buildings, and racking and suspended equipment need seismic bracing.
Can ColdMatch help with a Chilean project?
Yes. ColdMatch reviews the brief, prepares a comparable RFQ and introduces independent suppliers. It does not build, sell or finance facilities.
How does ColdMatch select suppliers for this country?
ColdMatch first reviews project scope, location, scale and technical requirements. The team then contacts suitable suppliers on the buyer's behalf and presents organized responses; suppliers cannot buy a ranking or automatic shortlist position.
ColdMatch reviews the project brief, contacts suitable independent suppliers on the buyer's behalf and presents organized responses. It does not manufacture, install, guarantee, lend, provide financial advice or sell paid rankings.
Two procurement paths
Competitive quotations or one accountable EPC partner
For commercial and industrial projects from USD 250K+. ColdMatch reviews the project, contacts suitable independent manufacturers, integrators or EPC contractors on the buyer's behalf, and presents organized responses for comparison. Final execution responsibility remains with the selected contractor or supplier.
A. Multi-supplier procurement
One structured RFQ, comparable quotations from several technically relevant suppliers. Best when you manage the design or want to benchmark equipment packages.
Start a multi-supplier RFQB. Turnkey EPC matching
One accountable manufacturer, integrator or EPC contractor for the complete scope: thermal design, refrigeration plant, panels, racking, automation, controls, backup, shipping, installation, commissioning, training, warranty and maintenance — delivered by the contractor, not by ColdMatch.
Start a turnkey EPC briefTurnkey, EPC and supply: direct answers
- What is a turnkey cold storage project?
- A project where one accountable manufacturer, integrator or EPC contractor delivers the complete facility — design, refrigeration plant, insulated envelope, installation and commissioning — under a single contract with single-point responsibility.
- What does a refrigeration EPC contractor provide?
- Engineering (thermal load and plant design), procurement of equipment and materials, and construction: installation, commissioning, training and handover, usually with warranty and optional maintenance.
- What information is required before quoting a cold store?
- Product stored, temperature zones, storage volume or pallet positions, daily throughput and entry temperature, site and ambient design temperature, power supply and backup, redundancy level, scope of supply, budget and project stage.
- Can one contractor deliver the complete cold-chain project?
- Yes, for many projects a single EPC contractor or integrator can take full responsibility. Very large or multi-site programmes sometimes split civil works, refrigeration and automation between specialists.
- What does commissioning include?
- Pressure and leak testing, refrigerant charging, start-up, pull-down to design temperature, controls and alarm verification, performance testing against the specification, operator training and handover documentation.
- Does ColdMatch install refrigeration systems?
- No. ColdMatch does not engineer, install, commission or operate anything. Its team reviews the project, contacts suitable independent manufacturers, integrators or EPC contractors on the buyer's behalf and presents organized responses; execution responsibility stays with the selected contractor.
- Does ColdMatch provide financing?
- No. ColdMatch is not a lender or bank. It may introduce qualified projects to independent third-party financing providers for evaluation; approval and terms are decided solely by those providers.
- How are refrigeration suppliers selected?
- Each request is reviewed manually. Suppliers or EPC contractors are shortlisted against the stated scope, technology, country, project scale and comparable references, and the buyer makes the final choice.
- What is the difference between equipment supply and full EPC delivery?
- Equipment supply covers delivered hardware only; the buyer manages design, installation and interfaces. Full EPC delivery puts engineering, supply, installation and commissioning under one contractor with single-point responsibility.