The world’s governments are racing to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050 by depending on green hydrogen and all renewable energy sources, therefore Europe is moving away from fossil fuels and toward a hydrogen-based economy.
The ancient continent is planning to acquire enormous amounts of hydrogen from African countries to fulfill this goal.
Europe wants to raise its reliance on hydrogen as a source of energy from 2% now to 14% by 2050. Hydrogen production in Europe is mostly based on natural gas, and it is used to make plastics, fertilizers, and chemical goods.
The EU has to move fast to achieve carbon neutrality in the industrial sector, but because the focus is now on the power sector, attaining carbon neutrality in all industrial sectors would be difficult.
The Dutch port of Rotterdam serves as a “gateway” for Colombian exports to Europe.
By 2030, European governments want to cut greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% from 1990 levels by imposing tariffs on high-carbon items and replacing electric cars with combustion engines.
The difficulties of producing hydrogen in Europe hydrogen that is free of contaminants
Hydrogen is the ideal replacement for fossil fuels, which are used in European sectors like chemicals and cement, but Europe lacks the space and sunshine needed to manufacture green hydrogen from renewable energy in large numbers.
As a result, Africa is poised to play a key part in Europe’s ambitious hydrogen import strategy.
Instead of the existing typical electrolysis technique, which is a less expensive and space-consuming technology, hydrogen may be manufactured utilizing solar energy using photocatalysis technology, which helps produce hydrogen using sunshine and water.
Africa’s prosperity is connected to Europe’s.
According to Eleonora Morrow, a hydrogen expert at Climate Research Center E3G, Africa has a big potential for hydrogen export, and a transition away from fossil fuels might place European-African ties on a new route.
Africa offers a varied range of renewable energy sources, including sun, wind, and hydroelectricity, all of which are crucial in the electrolysis of water and the creation of green hydrogen.
“Let’s face it,” said Frans Timmermans, Vice-President of the European Commission and Chair of the Climate Committee, during the 7th EU-Africa Economic Forum on February 14, “we want you to become pioneers in the process of green hydrogen generation.”
“It is impossible for Europe to succeed until the Sustainable Development Goals are implemented in Africa,” he concluded. Our future is intertwined because we are sister continents.”
Africa, according to Frans Timmermans, has one of the finest renewable energy potentials in the world, with low energy consumption.
Timmermans wants to treble the revenues of the African continent by increasing its ability to create renewable energy, which would benefit residents because renewable energy is decentralized, making it easier for African households to connect to the power grid.
Timmermans vowed to convert Africa’s position from a supplier of raw resources to a green hydrogen generator since hydrogen generation helps Africa to diversify its economy.
“Africa can – and should – do more than export basic commodities,” he remarked. The continent’s economy has the potential to expand into higher-value-added areas such as green steel or green fertilizer.”
The head of the European Commission’s Climate Committee stated that Africa’s concentration on green hydrogen production will benefit Europe as well because green hydrogen could be generated at competitive rates with inexpensive power from renewable energy sources.
Green hydrogen has great promise for the European Union, which wants it to account for 50% of Europe’s hydrogen needs by 2030, rather than the natural gas that presently dominates production.
According to Timmermans, hydrogen will play a significant role in the long-distance transportation of products.
“This is a terrific chance to prove our capacity as Africans, and to inspire the countries of the continent to work together,” said Innocent Ogarin, CEO of Hydrogen Africa.
“If enough money and effort are spent in Africa, it will be able to reach carbon neutrality sooner than expected,” he continued.
Concerns about a new stage in the development of the green hydrogen sector in South Africa are genuine.
Despite the high aspirations that Europeans have in Africa, others remain skeptical about the continent’s future as a source of green hydrogen.
Observers predict two possibilities, the best of which implies that the growth of a hydrogen-based economy would assist African workers in learning new skills and establishing steel and green fertilizer companies.
This delivers on the promise of Africa being a supplier of green industrial products, but it raises worries that not all nations would profit equally.
Germany, for example, is obviously focused on Nigeria and Angola, since the German Foreign Ministry has established “hydrogen offices” in these nations’ capitals to assist hydrogen development and export.
The second, more concerning scenario forecasts that hydrogen production might encroach on land set aside for renewable energy power generation, resulting in increased energy prices.
According to the German research organization Agora Energy Wind, the European continent needs yearly expenditures of 10 to 24 billion euros ($11.4 billion to $27.3 billion) to lower the cost of hydrogen.
By 2050, Europe’s hydrogen consumption is predicted to increase from 327 TWh per day to 2,500 TWh.
