Throughout 2023, the issue of green hydrogen dominated the media in Namibia and abroad. At the centre of this is Hyphen Hydrogen Energy, which is developing the biggest sub-Saharan Africa green hydrogen plant.
The project, developed on 4,000km² of land within the Tsau ||Khaeb National Park, is Namibia’s first fully vertically integrated GW-scale green hydrogen project and the largest green hydrogen production project in Sub-Saharan Africa. Upon completion of Phases 1 and 2, it will produce 2 million tonnes of green ammonia (a hydrogen derivative easier to transport) annually from ~7GW of predominantly wind and solar renewable energy generation capacity and ~3GW of electrolyser capacity. The project will avoid an estimated 5-6 million tonnes of CO2 emissions annually.
Below, ee track the events that marked Hyphen Hydrogen Energy’s 2023.
2 February: Hyphen signed non-binding MoU with a South Korean hydrogen producer, Approtium, to provide up to 500,000 tonnes of green ammonia annually.
It also signed with the German RWE Supply and Trading to deliver 300,000 tonnes in 2027.
9 May: Hyphen signed a Letter of Intent (LoI) with Koole Terminals, located in the Port of Rotterdam, Netherlands, for the proposed import of green ammonia into north-western Europe.
23 May: Namibia’s Cabinet approved the agreement with Hyphen to develop, implement, and operate the green hydrogen project.
20 June: Hyphen signed an MoU with the Government of Namibia, NamPort, NamPower, the Port of Rotterdam (PoR), Gasunie and Invest International to drive the green hydrogen project. The Govt announced taking up a 24% equity interest in the Hyphen project at historical cost. The investment will be held through SDG Namibia One, which will look to raise money from local institutional investors and investors from around the world to develop Namibian green hydrogen projects and related infrastructure. Invest International provided 100% of the initial funding of €40 million (~N$850 million) as grant funding. The European Investment Bank and the Government concluded a letter of intent to raise €500 million.
24 July: The Government of Namibia and Hyphen launched the socio-economic development framework (SED Framework) for the green hydrogen project. The SED Framework is an integral part of the Feasibility and Implementation Agreement (FIA), which demonstrates GRN’s commitment to incorporating socio-economic development targets for green hydrogen developers in implementing Namibia’s green hydrogen strategy. The SED Framework goes further than existing Namibian legal requirements and reflects Hyphen’s commitment to maximising Namibian participation in the project.
8 August: Hyphen signed an MoU with ITOCHU Corporation to explore potential collaboration areas to drive the green hydrogen project. Hyphen and ITOCHU, one of Japan’s largest general trading and investment companies, will now enter into talks on areas of potential collaboration on this landmark multi-billion-dollar green hydrogen project.
14 August: Hyphen signed a partnership agreement with ILF Consulting Engineers, a leading independent international engineering and consulting firm, to support the delivery of its ground-breaking green hydrogen project. ILF would provide project management services, technical expertise, procurement, and contract advice.
24 October: Hyphen and the Development Bank of Southern Africa announced plans to enter into a funding facility to progress the development of the green hydrogen project. The Project Preparation Facility will go towards the partial funding of engineering, environmental and socio-economic development workstreams on developing the project up to the final investment decision.
5 December: Hyphen was recognised as a Low-Carbon Hydrogen Energy Transition Changemaker by the 2023 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) Presidency in its Energy Transition Changemakers initiative. The Energy Transition Changemakers initiative introduced by the COP28 Presidency aims to foster private-sector collaboration in delivering innovative decarbonisation projects. Targeting renewables, efficiency, heavy emitters, and hydrogen sectors, the awards seek projects that help expedite the international pivot to clean power.
7 December: Hyphen and the Development Bank of Southern Africa closed the €5 million project Preparation funding facility to progress the development of Hyphen’s landmark green hydrogen project. The €5 million facility will go towards the partial funding of engineering, environmental, and socio-economic development workstreams related to the project’s development up to the final investment decision.
22 December: SDG Namibia One Fund and Hyphen concluded a share subscription agreement, following which the Fund will take up a 24% stake in the green hydrogen project. The Fund’s equity subscription will be backed by an initial EUR 23 million in development funding for the project. SDG Namibia One is a blended finance vehicle focused on green hydrogen projects and related infrastructure in Namibia. Blended finance is critical for the nascent green hydrogen industry, offering the advantage of reducing transaction costs and accelerating high-quality project development, ultimately leading to quicker investment decisions, expedited project delivery, and proof of concept.
