By Elna Schutz
South Africa.
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There is a lot of sunshine and wind in the country.
Lderitz, a town in southern Namibia, where harsh desert meets pale ocean, is now on the map, says Philip Balhoa.
The port town has previously benefited from diamonds and fishing booms, but now struggles with high unemployment and aging infrastructure.
Mr Balhoa is a member of the town council.
He hopes that the project will train and employ local people and bring down the town's unemployment rate.
"For a town that's really been struggling economically over the past 10 or 15, maybe longer, years, this is something that people are really excited about," he says.
The project will be located in the Tsau //Khaeb National Park and will eventually produce 300,000 tonnes of green hydrogen per year.
The renewable energy from the sun and wind will be used to separate hydrogen from desalinated water.
There are a variety of products made from hydrogen and green ammonia, including sustainable fuels.
Once the necessary feasibility processes are completed, the preferred bidder, Hyphen Hydrogen Energy, will have the rights to the project for 40 years.
The four years of construction will likely create 15,000 jobs and 3,000 more during full operations, according to the firm.
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President Hage Geingob has a plan to transform the country.
Mr James Mnyupe is a member of the government. Lderitz's location is ideal because of its close proximity to the ocean and extensive solar and wind resources.
Mr Mnyupe says this is part of a plan for change in the country. The president wanted to craft an economic recovery plan that is responsive, globally relevant, and systemic.
This is part of a larger development that the government hopes to find funding for, expanding into agriculture, logistics and energy. Mr Mnyupe talked about green hydrogen trains and the trade with other countries.
There are hopes of creating renewable electricity, both for export and as an alternative to imported coal power from South Africa.
He says that the idea is to turn the country into a synthetic fuels industry powerhouse.
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Lderitz will need a lot of investment.
Agreements have already been signed with Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands.
The initial project needs $9.4 billion to be funded, but the country is looking at more options, such as green or sustainable bonds.
The entire GDP of the country in 2020 was just $10.7 billion.
Mr Mnyupe says people could start taking us seriously as a trading partner and not a net recipient of development assistance. This means hope for the ordinary person in the country.
Mr Balhoa believes that the project will attract more investment from the central government into the area and that it will strengthen the infrastructure in Lderitz.
Matching concerns come with optimism. Mr Balhoa says previous large projects have not invested back into the community as they were supposed to. The small town will not be able to meet the increased infrastructure demands with accessible housing being a big challenge.
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It is costly to build hydrogen plants like this one.
Kennedy Chege, a researcher and PhD candidate at the Mineral Law in Africa research chair at the University of Cape Town, believes that it will be a game-changing event for the African continent.
The government is not able to provide funding for the development of renewable energy plans, which is the main challenge. It requires funding from both the public and private sectors.
Mr Chege believes that the international partnerships are a positive sign.
Francy Carney is the image source.
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Philip Balhoa says hydrogen could put Lderitz on the map.
The amount of water required to produce hydrogen is a challenge. It can be expensive to do this through desalination, as is the process used later in the hydrogen-making process.
Mr Chege says that there are valid concerns about the viability of the project, but he is hopeful that the advantages of the country will help.
While several countries in Africa are developing green hydrogen plans, the more advanced one is Namibia. There hasn't been much progress in terms of implementation throughout Africa.
While there is a lot to be done, the government of Namibia is pushing ahead and may announce a call for proposals for a second green hydrogen project as early as January 2022.
