Port of Rotterdam agrees to support Namibia's green hydrogen ambitions

The Port of Rotterdam Authority and other Dutch entities have partnered with the Namibian government to help develop green hydrogen infrastructure in the African country.

PHOTO: The Port of Rotterdam has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to cooperate on green hydrogen with the Namibian Implementation Authority Office, Namport, and Nampower. Port of Rotterdam

Countries that missed out on the oil rush in previous decades are investing heavily to ensure they are not left behind from a potential hydrogen boom in the future.

Namibia, which currently does not produce enough electricity to supply its own citizens, is marching ahead with plans to build a green hydrogen plant that is estimated to be worth nearly as much as its current gross domestic product (GDP).

The agreement with the Port of Rotterdam follows a deal whereby the Namibian government bought a 24% stake in Hyphen Hydrogen Energy - which is a Namibia-based green hydrogen company with German backing. The company oversees development of an integrated renewable energy and green hydrogen production plant spread over 4,000 square kilometers near the southern Namibian port of Luderitz. With an estimated value of around $10 billion, the project aims to produce 2 million mt/year of green ammonia by 2029.

Under the new agreement, the Port of Rotterdam Authority and other partners will share knowledge and resources to advance development of the Hyphen project. This follows previous collaboration agreements between Namibia and the Netherlands, under which the Port of Rotterdam has been assisting the Namibian Ports Authority (NamPort) and Hyphen on a new master plan for Luderitz.

Other signatories in the agreement include Dutch financier Invest International, energy networks operator Gasunie, the Government of Namibia and Namibian grid operator NamPower.

By Debarati Bhattacharjee

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