Two green hydrogen projects nearing completion

WINDHOEK, 28 AUG (NAMPA) - Green Hydrogen Commissioner James Mnyupe has announced that two of Namibia’s eight green hydrogen projects are on track for completion by the end of 2024.
This includes the Daures Green Hydrogen Village project.
Mnyupe at a technical media briefing on Wednesday, ahead of the Global Africa Hydrogen Summit scheduled for 09 to 13 September 2024, said “Daures is nearing completion and they are hoping to close off by the end of the year. They are looking to produce ammonia sulphate using green hydrogen and ammonia.”
The project is expected to have an annual output of up to 100 tonnes of green ammonia, and will also produce over 400 tonnes of green tomatoes during its pilot phase.
Another project is Cleanergy Solutions Namibia which is 90 per cent complete, having received most of its funding from the Southern African Science Service Centre for Climate Change and Adaptive Land Management (SASSCAL). The project is leading the development of a green hydrogen production plant in the Erongo Region and comprises hydrogen production, a refuelling station, and a training centre.
Mnyupe also revealed that the much-anticipated N.dollars 600 million Hyiron Oshivela project will go into production at the end of the year, making Namibia the first country to produce iron using renewable energy, worldwide. Dubbed the first industrial climate-neutral iron production facility in the world, Hyiron Oshivela has already started installing three to four megawatts of solar panels, according to Mnyupe.
“Their furnace has now been dispatched from Germany and it should be arriving here around October. That is the first of its kind in the world and it is a project we are very keen to receive,” Mnyupe told journalists.
He however said all projects under the programme face challenges and delays such as policy interventions by the Southern African Customs Union (SACU).
“The good news is that the ecosystem is buzzing,” Mnyupe noted.
At the same event, Namibia Green Hydrogen Programme Head of Policy Planning and Strategy, Joseph Mukendwa revealed that a national task force on skills development, education and research will be launched at the Global Africa Hydrogen Summit, to assist with assessments on capacity building.
“With the engagements we’ve had with the stakeholders, there is an appreciation that we have the capacity to some extent locally. It may be that we just need to upgrade and upscale some Namibians to be able to take on these opportunities in the sector,” he said.
He further noted that the task force, which will consist of 10 members, will engage key training institutions to assess their capabilities to train identified key occupational areas.
(NAMPA)
EB/EK/AS