As part of its attempts to largely rely on new and renewable energy, Egypt is rushing against the clock to increase the production of green hydrogen as a clean source of energy.
The Egyptian government emphasized how crucial it is for the nation to focus on green hydrogen projects as part of its efforts to transition to clean energy and lower carbon emissions.
According to economist Alia el-Mahdy, professor at Cairo University’s Faculty of Economics and Political Sciences, green hydrogen is becoming a profitable and practical replacement for fossil fuels, particularly in light of the commencement of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
Concerns about the energy supply have been raised as a result of the conflict, along with requests for a greater reliance on less harmful energy sources, she claimed.
Despite its interest in producing green hydrogen prior to the start of the conflict, Cairo is responding to these appeals, according to el-Mahdy.
Professor of economics at Cairo University and director of the Egyptian Forum for Economic and Strategic Studies is Rashad Abdo. He explained to Majalla that Egypt’s green hydrogen initiatives are laying the foundation for the country’s energy future since green hydrogen, along with innovative and renewable energies, produce no pollution.
Prior to hosting the Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP 27) in Sharm el-Sheikh in November of this year, Egypt is extending the execution of green projects.
Taking Steps
Cairo is developing rapidly in the energy field. By converting to green energy, Egypt wants to make it apparent to the entire world that it values environmental resources, according to Abdo.
He pointed out that green hydrogen is a new revolution in clean, fresh, and renewable energy and said that Egypt has a great chance to gain ground with major international partners in this promising area.
Numerous agreements and memorandums of understanding have been reached between Egypt and significant multinational businesses operating in this field, including Norwegian and Emirati companies.
Abdo continued by saying that during the COP27 meeting, Egypt might finalize a number of agreements with major international firms and get funding to build its network of green projects around the country.
He emphasized that the Egyptian State is trying to promote investment in green energy projects due to Egypt’s potential to become a significant regional hub and pivot in this crucial industry that is anticipated to revolutionize the world’s energy system in the coming years.
According to him, these initiatives will hasten the region’s energy transformation.
A list of initiatives for the generation of green hydrogen will soon be announced by the Egyptian government.
It said earlier this year that these initiatives will be a part of a nationwide effort.
Renewables
Additionally, Egypt intends to include environmentally friendly hydrogen generation in its Energy Strategy for 2035.
The government is working harder to diversify energy sources, including those that come from conventional sources and those that rely on solar and wind energy.
The State is doing a lot to promote private sector involvement in renewable energy projects and to scale up existing enterprises.
In July of last year, President Abdel Fattah El Sisi gave the administration the order to develop a national strategy for the production of green hydrogen and submit this strategy during COP27.
President Sisi met with Yehia Zaki, Chairman of the Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCZone), and Mohamed Shaker, Minister of Power and Renewable Energy, in late May of this year to discuss strategies for increasing electricity output from renewable sources to 42%.
Egypt is not the only country focusing so intently on the creation of this clean fuel.
Other nations throughout the world are adopting comparable actions by declaring their own national plans for the generation of green hydrogen, including Australia, France, India, and Brazil.
Green hydrogen production is also almost complete in several Arab nations, such as the United Arab Emirates, where the state-owned ADNOC corporation and the Spanish company Cepsa inked a relevant deal.
Morocco and Germany have also agreed to work together to construct the country’s first green hydrogen plant.
For its part, Egypt hopes to utilize the investment momentum created by the COP27 preparations to turn the SCZone into a regional green energy powerhouse.
To begin the production of green hydrogen, Egypt has signed six memorandums of understanding (MoUs) with foreign firms, including Scatec of Norway, the Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company, Hassan Allam Holding, Egyptian Inara Capital, Danish Maersk, EDF Alliance of France, and AMEA Power of the United Arab Emirates.
The SCZone also inked a memorandum of agreement for the development of a project that would create 300,000 tons of green ammonia with the Sovereign Fund of Egypt, the New and Renewable Energy Authority, and the French Total Alliance, and Inara Capital.
A contract for the construction of green energy facilities in the SCZone and along the Mediterranean coast was also inked by Masdar and Hassan Allam Holding.
480,000 tons of green hydrogen are predicted to be produced by these initiatives.
The green hydrogen factory will be established by Hassan Allam Holding and will begin functioning in 2026, according to Hassan Allam, the head of the firm.
According to Allam, the facility will yearly generate 100,000 tons of green methanol.
He continues by saying that the Suez Canal’s cargo ships would be powered by this methanol.
On May 20, Yehia Zaki, the head of the SCZone, met in London with top representatives of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.
He mentioned investments totaling $10 billion in green ammonia and hydrogen in Egypt, where he projected yearly production of both substances to be close to 2 million tons.
In the near future, “we anticipate additional investments to be put into this industry,” he stated.
By 2025 or 2026, Zaki continued, the government hoped to start testing the viability of green hydrogen projects.
He said that to increase output to 5 million tons, between $15 billion and $17 billion in investments will be required.
According to Zaki, some of this money will be utilized for wind and solar energy projects beyond the SCZone.
Along with supporting both domestic and foreign businesses, the government also attempts to draw investments.
The establishment of an independent organization to monitor investor issues, address obstacles, and streamline investment procedures across all industries was announced by Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouli.
According to the Sustainable Development Strategy (SDS): Egypt Vision 2030, the Prime Minister stated that the Egyptian state is working hard to develop an energy strategy that includes green hydrogen as a source of energy. This would be a significant step for Egypt to become a regional hub for new and renewable energy.
Mayalla
