Namibia Plans To Use Green Hydrogen Locally As Well

Justicia Shipena
The hydrogen generated by green hydrogen projects in Namibia will also be used locally.
This is according to Green Hydrogen Commissioner James Mnyupe, who touched on
Namibia's local use of hydrogen during the signing ceremony of the Feasibility and
Implementation Agreement (FIA) between the Namibian government and Hyphen
Hydrogen Energy (Hyphen).
Hyphen is a Namibian registered green hydrogen development company, specifically
formed to develop green hydrogen projects in Namibia for international, regional and
domestic supply.
Mnyupe stated the Daures Green Hydrogen Village (DGHV) and Green Hydrogen
Applications in the Port Environment will be for local uses.
He added the two pilot projects will produce ammonia for use in agriculture as fertilizer
locally.
"We have provided funding together with our development partners for four different
pilot projects. One has already started at Daures and another one called Cleanergy
Namibia is in the pipeline. So, both of the two pilot projects are looking at producing
hydrogen for the use of making ammonia and fertiliser in Namibia," Mnyupe explained.
Cleanergy Namibia is a joint venture between CMB.TECH and the O&L Group.
Cleanergy Namibia will develop green hydrogen production projects in Namibia
including leading the green hydrogen production plant and demonstration hub, its first
development in Namibia and the continent. The aim is to produce green hydrogen from
solar power and distribute the clean fuel to heavy-duty applications like trucks,
locomotives, mining equipment and ships.
The DGHV, where over 30,000 hectares of land have been made available, will be
Africa’s first Net Zero village. In Its first phase, the village will employ over 100
Namibians during construction and over 50 permanent Namibian’s in a modern carbon
free estate.
The project will be carried out in four phases, each of which will focus on providing
industrial-level production for local consumption and international export. Phase One
was recently launched.
According to Namibia's Green Hydrogen Council, Uis, situated in the Daures
constituency of the Erongo region, has tremendous potential for the usage of green
hydrogen and green ammonia.
Local media reported in April this year that the DGHV would begin operations in
October.

Mnyupe further stated that the service station will seek to create hydrogen for local
applications such as transportation.
Cleanergy Namibia, CMB.TECH, the O&L Group and Namport are working on this
project to decarbonize port logistics, lower the port's carbon footprint, and employ
alternative fuels, allowing port operations to move to low-carbon operations.
The O&L Group’s strong local Namibian footprint and expertise in the development of
renewable energy parks, and the hydrogen and industrial knowhow of CMB.TECH are a
powerful combination to deliver this unique project.
The project intends to accelerate the international port industry's transition to a low-
carbon, safe operation paradigm. According to the Namibia Green Hydrogen Council,
the main goal of this project is to demonstrate a port equipped with hydrogen
technology, using locally produced Green Hydrogen as an energy independent, low-cost
fuel via innovative, and cost-effective solutions that will be ready for market adoption by
the end of the project.
The Council said preliminary feasibility studies have already been completed that show
the possibility for using Green Hydrogen on port equipment.
The DGHV will pioneer the production of green hydrogen and green ammonia in
Namibia as part of a project sponsored by a N$220 million grant from the German
Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF).
The 18-month production phase is coordinated by the Southern African Science Centre
for Climate Change and Adaptive Land Management.
The project is intended to create approximately 500g of green ammonia per day. This
will be utilised locally as fertiliser for crops, minimising the requirement for all fertiliser
to be imported.
The World Food Programme (WFP) Namibia joined with the Daures Green Hydrogen
Village earlier this month to boost the production of green hydrogen and ammonia-
based fertilisers.
The collaboration aims to increase food production at community agricultural projects.
The Daures Green Hydrogen Consortium signed its first offtake agreement with Sable
Chemicals, a Zimbabwean ammonium nitrate fertiliser company, in December 2022.
The arrangement allows Sable Chemicals to purchase up to 40,000 tonnes of green
ammonia, a vital component in the fertiliser manufacturing process, from Namibia's
Daures Green Hydrogen Village.
At the same time, the Daures Green Hydrogen Consortium's Chief Executive Officer,
Jerome Namaseb, was quoted as saying that the consortium has also signed an