President Nangolo Mbumba said Namibia expects firmer estimates of recoverable oil and gas reserves this financial year.
Mbumba, who delivered his first State of the Nation address Thursday, said Namibia experienced a surge in oil exploration activities from international oil companies, specifically in the promising oil-rich basins, including the Walvis Basin and the Orange Basin.
“We are prepared for this opportunity through a robust local content regime, a ready sovereign wealth fund, amongst other measures to maximize the impact and benefit for our country,” Mbumba said.
He said Namibia is exploring the feasibility of using locally produced green hydrogen to manufacture goods such as ammonia, fertilizer, hydrogen, iron and cement in a cleaner manner, giving us a potential competitive advantage to capture new markets.
According to Mbumba, the green ammonia market is expected to grow by 70% by 2030.
He said pilot projects for green hydrogen, green ammonia and green iron production will produce initial outputs for the first time this year.
Mbumba said a new tax regime was introduced thate finance minister for the 2024/25 financial year aims to shed four percentage points off our corporate tax rate, a new competitive rate of 20% for activities housed in special economic zones, and double the effective tax thresholds for individuals.
“These will provide much relief to our citizens and are promising signals for Namibians and investors considering establishing a foothold in Namibia,” Mbumba said.
