Namibia’s ambitious green hydrogen endeavour, the Hyphen development scheme, has received a major endorsement from the German government.
Berlin formally recognised the Hyphen project as a strategic foreign initiative, affirming its eligibility for targeted support.
The Hyphen Hydrogen Energy project is a joint venture between Namibian-registered company Nicholas Holdings and German energy giant Enertrag.
Experts view it as a catalyst for establishing a robust green hydrogen industry in the Southern African nation, with far-reaching implications for global decarbonisation efforts.
Dr. Robert Habeck, German Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection, said: “Germany is supporting the development of a green hydrogen economy in Namibia that is sustainable for the population through hydrogen and PtX cooperation.”
“The “Hyphen” project is committed to this in a similar way. We are therefore prepared to categorise it as a foreign project, under certain conditions, in the strategic interest of the Federal Republic of Germany and thus provide more support than usual through our foreign trade promotion instruments.”
Under the envisioned timeline, construction of the Hyphen project is slated to commence in January 2025, with the inaugural phase expected to be operational by late 2026.
Upon completion, the facility aims to churn out 350,000 tons of green hydrogen and two million tons of green ammonia annually, primarily earmarked for international markets.
Commenting on the announcement, Marco Raffinetti, CEO of Hyphen Hydrogen Energy, said: “This Letter of Intent reflects the crucial role projects like ours will play in decarbonising heavy industry in Europe and beyond and the leading role that Germany is playing in driving forward global decarbonisation.”
In a bid to bolster its commitment, the Namibian government intends to secure a 24% equity stake in the venture, signalling strong support for sustainable development and economic diversification.
According to cost projections from the NewClimate Institute, Namibia may be able to produce some of the most cost competitive green hydrogen globally.
While the country has significant solar and wind resources, it is highly dependent on energy imports and drought-vulnerable hydropower.
Although domestic use of hydrogen and its derivatives is limited in the country, Namibia’s national hydrogen strategy highlights the role green hydrogen could play in decarbonising the mining sector through green hydrogen fuelled heavy-duty mining trucks.
It also notes pilot opportunities to use green hydrogen for low-emissions transport solutions like tugboats and regional trains, and green ammonia for fertiliser production.
The strategy sets a production target of 10-15m tonnes hydrogen equivalent per year by 2050, around 5-8% of the expected international trade volume.
To produce 15m tonnes would require 750 terawatt hours per year (TWh/year) in renewable energy generation. In 2020, the country’s domestic renewable energy generation was just 1.33TWh, meaning that Namibia must massively accelerate renewable installations capacity in the coming decades.
