BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 27. Africa and Europe are expected to be the drivers of global green hydrogen industry growth in 2030s, Trend reports via Rystad Energy, independent energy research and business intelligence company from Norway.
According to the research, there are a total of 52 green hydrogen projects to be implemented in Africa. This will boost the production capacity to 7.2 million tons by the end of 2035.
"Africa's total announced electrolyzer pipeline capacity has reached 114 GW, with 61 percent of this tied to countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. This African region has an announced electrolyzer pipeline of about 70GW, with Mauritania covering 50 percent of the total, followed by South Africa and Namibia. Sub-Saharan Africa holds a highly strategic position for the development of a successful green hydrogen economy as South Africa sits on about 90 percent of the world’s global platinum group metals reserves – critical for the production of polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) electrolyzers," the research said.
However, as Rystad Energy noted, to date, the final investment decision has been made for only 13 MW of the planned 114 GW.
Meanwhile, Germany alone intends to import 50-70 percent of its hydrogen to meet domestic demand by 2030, most of it coming from Africa. With plans to build between 17 and 21 GW of hydrogen-powered gas plants by 2030, Germany’s commitment to a green hydrogen economy is substantial.
"To facilitate imports, Germany recently launched a €900 million ($957 million) auction scheme called H2Global, securing purchase guarantees for hydrogen producers outside of Europe exclusively. According to Rystad Energy analysis, African states are currently in the best position to supply green hydrogen in the quantities Europe requires," the agency said.