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De Beers backed Netherlands start-up Kelp Blue, fully operationalise its processing plant at Luderitz by the end of June this year. De Beers Group invested N$ 31.1 million to develop the first large-scale giant kelp farm off the Namibian coast way back in 2021 with a governmental license. The plant was completed at the cost of N$59 million, with a production target of roughly 150 tonnes of fresh kelp per hectare. The development of the entire project, which is planned to be an 800-ha commercial operation, is expected to cost N$938 million over a five-year period.
De Beers backed Netherlands start-up Kelp Blue, fully operationalise its processing plant at Luderitz by the end of June this year. De Beers Group invested N$ 31.1 million to develop the first large-scale giant kelp farm off the Namibian coast way back in 2021 with a governmental license. The plant was completed at the cost of N$59 million, with a production target of roughly 150 tonnes of fresh kelp per hectare.
By producing bio-stimulants, the startup aims to meet the challenge of global food demand and climate stress through this innovative solution for farmers. Kelp Blue collects cultivated kelp from the seaweed canopy to produce alternative agri-food, bio-stimulant, and textile products, and converts them into a variety of products, including bio-stimulants, at the newly built processing plant in Luderitz. Kelp Blue is also developing alginates, an input for the bio-packaging market. The Company’s vision is to create products that enable the shift to sustainability in various industries.
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This project is a harbinger of green economic development in Namibia, which locks away significant amounts of carbon dioxide in the ocean forever, thus sustaining healthy marine life and ecosystems. Kelp production creates fresh opportunities in the pharmaceuticals and textiles industries, the primary focus at present is to create a strong local business producing bio-stimulants. Stated De Beers’ Head of Carbon Neutrality Kirsten Hund. There is risk in start-up businesses but the potential of this goes beyond the carbon credit benefits, as it offers the potential for job creation in an employment-restricted area – and could truly energise the region, said Hund
The investment from De Beers and initial backing from Climate Fund Managers,’ Climate Investor Two Fund, are expected to fuel Kelp Blue’s plans to create a strong local business that enables the shift to sustainability in various industries.
