South Africa’s President, H.E. Cyril Ramaphosa, alongside the country’s Department of Public Works and Infrastructure, has identified a R300 billion investment pipeline under the southern African country’s Green Hydrogen National Program (GHNP) as part of a Strategic Integrated Project (SIP) for accelerated development in line with South Africa’s Infrastructure Development Act.
With the potential to produce up to 13 million tons of green hydrogen and derivatives per year by 2050 and poised to position the country as a prime investment destination, the GHNP will require between 140 GW and 300 GW of renewable energy to implement, with a total of 19 green hydrogen projects having been identified for development across five provinces.
“We are driving regulatory and legislative reform to make our economy more competitive, to attract more investment, and to create more jobs,” H.E. President Ramaphosa, stated in Cape Town on 29 November, adding that, “Globally, the demand for green hydrogen and green hydrogen-based products, such as ammonia and synthetic jet fuels, is rising significantly. This presents a unique opportunity for South Africa to link its mineral endowment and its renewable energy endowment to drive industrialization.”
Endowed with world-class wind and solar resources, South Africa is well-positioned to take advantage of its renewable capabilities and accelerate the development of green hydrogen and its derivatives – such as green steel, sustainable aviation fuel, ammonia, and fertilizers – for export and position itself to manufacture electrolyzers, fuel cells and other renewable energy components.
Having been placed on an updated list of SIPs to be listed in an upcoming Government Gazette – which will expediate the program’s path towards development – South Africa’s Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure, Honorable. Pratricia de Lille, indicated that the GHNP projects will begin as soon as possible and would create up to 10,500 jobs during construction and operation.
“More needs to be done to market our ambitions and appetite to be a world-class green hydrogen production hub to the rest of the world relative to our competitors such as Chile, Australia, and the Middle East,” Honorable. Minister de Lille stated, adding, “This means that all processes relating to the implementation of SIPs, including processes relating to any application for any approval, authorization, license, permission, or exemption and processes relating to any construction and participation now run concurrently instead of the usual process, which is sequential.”
