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Namibia with its vast swathes of arid land and an abundance of sunlight, is poised to harness solar energy on an unprecedented level. Wind energy, especially along the coastal regions where consistent and strong winds prevail, offers another significant opportunity.
Namibia with its vast swathes of arid land and an abundance of sunlight, is poised to harness solar energy on an unprecedented level. Wind energy, especially along the coastal regions where consistent and strong winds prevail, offers another significant opportunity. These renewable resources have the potential not only to meet Namibia’s domestic energy needs but also to position Namibia as a major exporter of clean energy and goods exhibiting a local carbon content signature, to the region, particularly to Europe.
By aligning its industry practices with eco-friendly standards and investing in clean technologies, Namibia can not only avoid carbon-related tariffs but also solidify its reputation as a responsible and reliable trading partner to the European Union, thus creating the possibility for preferential market access for Namibian products, stated the Namibian Minister of Finance and Public Enterprises, Iipumbu Shiimi at the Cleanergy Solutions Namibia bricklaying ceremony on the outskirts of Walvis Bay on Thursday. The ceremony was held to signify the commencement of a green hydrogen station to be built on a 10-hectare land on Farm 58, situated near the harbour town.
Namibia signed a special Memorandum of Understanding with the European Union (EU) known as the EU ETS (Emission Trading Scheme). Under the EU ETS, a cap is set on the total amount of greenhouse gas emissions, and emissions allowances are allocated to participating entities. According to the Minister, the agreement also helps Namibia to have less stringent carbon-based tariffs from the European Union.
The project is estimated to cost about N$270 million and is being developed through a joint venture between the Ohlthaver & List (O&L) Group and CMB.TECH, and is expected to be fully operational by mid-2024. The Cleanergy Solutions Namibia station is a first of its kind in Africa. It will consist of a public refueling service station which will power ships and locomotives.
The project includes a 10-hectare solar park with a hydrogen production facility equipped with a 5 megawatt (MW) Proton Exchange Membrane electrolyser and a 5MW hour battery. The electrolyser will produce green hydrogen utilising the electricity input from the solar park and the energy stored in the battery energy storage system, whereas a hybrid control system will efficiently manage the electricity flow to ensure stable green hydrogen production and a reliable and stable mini-grid. Additionally, the project will have a Hydrogen Academy to train future professionals on green hydrogen. In the future, the station will start to produce green ammonia.
Cleanergy Solution Namibia plans to further build a clean ammonia bunkering facility at Walvis Bay at a cost of more than €2.2 billion. Meanwhile, the parties announced that Cleanergy is exploring a partnership with Fortescue, with the aim of making Walvis Bay a clean fuel hotspot in Sub-Saharan Africa. The partnership has the focus to build a green ammonia plant next to the hydrogen production plant.
Operating two divisions of Metals and Energy, Fortescue is a global metals and green energy company, recognised for its culture, innovation, and industry-leading development of infrastructure, mining assets, and green energy initiatives. Hence, its commitment to producing green hydrogen, containing zero carbon, from renewable electricity.
Read Also:
https://trendsnafrica.com/kenyan-ffi-strives-for-green-hydrogen-jv-with-namibia/
https://trendsnafrica.com/namibia-leads-african-green-energy-bandwagon/
Cleanergy is a very important investment for the CMB Group, being its first major hydrogen production project in Africa, thus aims to prove that green hydrogen can be produced efficiently and cheaply with renewable African sun. The cleantech division CMB.TECH develops maritime and heavy industrial applications that will run on hydrogen: ferries, tugboats, container vessels, but also trucks, locomotives, and mining equipment.
This comes as President Hage Geingob revealed that Namibia has projects under development, looking to deploy over US$20 billion to develop large-scale green hydrogen projects that would provide the world with clean molecules needed to decarbonise hard-to-abate sectors.
