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Green hydrogen industry ‘to start from scratch’

Namibia’s green hydrogen industry will be faced with challenges because of the country’s lack of industrialisation.

According to a report by Dechema, the industry is starting from scratch and would have to overcome the challenges of developing areas where no previous development exists.

“For this reason, the first projects need to overcome the hurdles in cost reduction, the development of standards and infrastructure expansion,” the report says.

It says the industry will also grapple with the high cost of transportation, which is expected to be twice the price of production.

“Namibia’s potential off-takers are scattered across multiple continents, making long-distance transport unavoidable. Depending on the transport medium and the distance the imported green hydrogen can be twice as expensive compared to its production costs,” the report states.

Co-author Chokri Boumrifak says the cost increases because hydrogen requires a lot of energy to be turned into a liquid form for easier storage and transport.

“Long-distance transportation becomes more feasible when conversion steps are reduced,” he says.

Boumrifak says most of Namibia’s green hydrogen projects will produce ammonia, which can be transported in liquid form.

He says it will be better to utilise the ammonia to make chemicals or fertilisers first, rather than breaking down the compound to retrieve the hydrogen.

“Therefore, it becomes imperative to focus on products that can be further processed with higher value”.

The report was funded by the German federal ministry of education and research as part of Namibia’s green hydrogen project framework.

Various pilot projects are currently either in the planning or construction phase.

They have focused on the creation of a green hydrogen village, a production plant, green schemes and a fertiliser plant.

Two of four green hydrogen pilot projects announced in 2022 have already yielded more than 300 jobs, with production expected this year.

“In total, these projects aim to produce at least 650kt of green hydrogen per year. To achieve the goals of the strategy for 2030, additional production capacities are required,” Boumrifak says.

– email:Shania@namibian.com.na; X:@ShaniaLazarus

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