- Africa can export about 20 million and 40 million tons of green hydrogen annually by 2050.
- The estimated potential cost to produce clean hydrogen is $2.50/kg by 2030.
The Managing Director of Conex Liberia, a petroleum company, Amitabh Prasad, has said harnessing the potential for renewable energy and green hydrogen production or replacing carbon atoms with hydrogen atoms in the energy value chain can build peace and stability in Africa. During a presentation at the Hydrogen Africa conference in Johannesburg in late September, Prasad said, “By 2035, Africa can produce 50 million tons of competitively priced green hydrogen.
“The expected global demand for green hydrogen is 607 million tons by 2050. In comparison, Africa’s demand for green hydrogen and its derivatives will reach 10 million to 18 million tons annually by 2050, with a production potential much above that. After meeting internal demand, Africa can export about 20 million and 40 million tons of green hydrogen annually by 2050. It can, therefore, consume its production of green hydrogen and have sufficient surplus to export.”
Furthermore, he noted that the estimated potential cost to produce clean hydrogen is $2.50/kg by 2030. This estimate could decrease to between $1/kg and $2/kg by 2050. The future energy basket would see blue hydrogen continue to play a role, with an estimated 31 per cent of hydrogen derived from blue processes and 69 per cent derived from green processes. However, he added that grey hydrogen would cease to be part of the basket.
An International Energy Agency study in 2022 estimated that Africa could produce clean hydrogen at the cost of between $1.50/kg and $2.70/kg and require an investment of between $450 billion and $ 900 billion by 2050. “Harnessing Africa’s renewables and hydrogen potential will not only help to overcome some of the social and development problems in Africa but is a good business case that makes sense,” said Prasad.
Africa has 17 per cent of the world’s population and 20 per cent of its arable land but produces only 4 per cent of global greenhouse gases (GHGs). African countries are vulnerable to climate change despite not being large contributors to GHGs. In addition, he said that the key to unlocking the potential of clean hydrogen is to ensure legal ease of securing land, of which there are large tracts.