The HyIron Oshivela project has moved from a skeptical idea to reality, from doubt to hope.
In just 12 months, the project has turned the barren desert into a thriving industrial area that symbolises the power Namibia’s vast natural resources are capable of.
President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah officially opened the project on Friday, April 11, 2025, said Namibia possesses raw materials and renewable energy and the required human capital, political will, and a deep commitment to global sustainability goals.
EU Ambassador to Namibia Ana Beatriz Martins said as HyIron enters Phase Two to scale up production from 15.000 to 200,000 tons per year, the EU and The Netherlands will join as partners, contributing €12,9 million (N$258 million) in grants to Namibia’s SDG1 Fund.
“At least seven European companies seek to invest in Namibia’s Green Hydrogen economy, with a prospected investment pipeline exceeding €20 billion or N$430 billion,” Beatriz Martins said.
The project does not only put Namibia at the forefront of establishing a vibrant green economy but shows how determined a country of just more than 3 million can do.
Nandi-Ndaitwah said Namibia is not merely awaiting the future but building it here and now.
“As the world turns its gaze upon Namibia today, this project positions our country as a strategic partner in producing iron, a vital material across the automotive, energy, and manufacturing sectors,” she said.
The President said a plant producing green iron with zero emissions in Namibia sounded like another far-fetched dream.
Nandi-Ndaitwah also said the official opening of HyIron’s Oshivela Plant in Namibia is not only because it is one of the world’s first industrial facilities dedicated to zero-emissions iron production, but it is also talking to the country’s national developmental agenda of value addition, natural resource beneficiation and industrialisation.
The President added that the official opening ceremony demonstrated HyIron’s readiness to walk with Namibia on the journey to prosperity by growing the economy and strengthening international trade while living in harmony with the environment.
“Beyond its role in steel production, the Oshivela Plant is a powerful reminder of what can be achieved when visionary leadership, international cooperation, and local talent come together,” Nandi-Ndaitwah said.
She recognised Namibia’s young people: the engineers, artisans, technicians, and all the workers who brought the dream to fruition in just under 12 months.
The project created about 400 direct jobs during the first construction phase, with 50 jobs in the first maintenance phase.
The company also provided 50 direct and 50 indirect employment, of which 90% of employees were youth.
Nandi-Ndaitwah said the young people’s efforts demonstrate resilience, innovation, and commitment to work.
“These young Namibians have not merely built a factory; they have written a new chapter in our country’s industrial history. They have shown the world that Namibia is prepared to lead, innovate, and inspire,” she said.
Beatriz Martins said the achievement is the fruit of Namibia’s bold vision of political leadership, which decided to lead the way in green industrialisation with its rich renewable resources, reaping the benefits of its economic growth and creating quality jobs.
Beatriz Martins said it is a testament to Namibia’s entrepreneurial talent and resolve, recognising the opportunities to translate policy visions into concrete business actions.
She said the Federal Government of Germany supported HyIron with grant money in its experimental phase.
“We are proud to be a partner in turning Namibia’s green transition policy into reality as Team Europe and with the EU’s Global Gateway Investment Initiative for Africa,” Beatriz Martins said.
Deputy Prime Minister Natangue Ithete, who is also the mines minister, said Natangue Ithete said Namibia has taken a bold and forward-thinking step by investing in clean technology and developing low to zero-carbon industrial models.
“Our approach focuses on building sustainable industrial clusters that reduce emissions and respond to new global trade trends, where carbon-heavy products are increasingly being taxed or restricted,” Ithete said.
According to Ithete, the HyIron Oshivela project is a perfect example of our strategy in action.
“It represents a new wave of industrial development where businesses invest in Namibia to leverage our abundant clean energy resources,” he said.
Namibia’s green industrialisation blueprint says the country can produce and export green hot briquetted iron to Europe due to low-cost green hydrogen.
The blueprint says Namibia has the potential to create up to 7,900 jobs and add US$1,2 billion to the GDP by 2050.
The Oshivela project, with an annual production potential of 1 million tons of iron per year, is projected to avoid 1.8 million tons of CO₂e/year.
If applied to the needed additional production capacities of 300 million tons until 2030, 540 million tons of CO₂e could be avoided yearly by 2030, providing an enormous contribution to the fight against climate change.
HyIron Green Technologies (Pty) Ltd (HyIron) intends to develop the Oshivela Green Iron Pilot Project on Portion 4 of Farm Bloemenhof 109.
HyIron owns the farm, which is located ~75 km northeast of Swakopmund in the Erongo Region.
HyIron is a Namibian registered company that owns the “Net Zero Iron Production Technology” with their sister companies, Co2Grab GmbH and Hyiron GmbH, based in Germany.
HyIron was established through a partnership of Namibian and German companies that work in renewable energies and engineering.
At its heart is the HyIron technology, an innovative process to reduce iron ore in a rotary kiln with the help of green hydrogen, thus entirely carbon neutral.
HyIron is a proven technology that enables this transition and allows scaling alongside the availability of renewable energies.
The resulting iron has unprecedented purity levels, which allows for high-quality steel production with reduced energy and material usage at the steel factory or foundry.
