Huge amounts of hydrogen will eventually be required to get the greening of Dutch industry off the ground.
Namibia may be able to provide some of this in the future. The Netherlands and the African country committed to collaborate in this area during the Glasgow climate summit.
“We’ll need a lot of hydrogen, maybe more than we can manufacture ourselves,” says Dilan Yeşilgöz-Zegerius, the outgoing State Secretary. “And they want to be a part of it.” Namibia, she claims, has a lot of potential as a “giant desert country near the sea.” Hydrogen is a non-toxic gas that can be created in a variety of methods. It is labeled as “green” if it is made with electricity derived from renewable sources such as the sun and wind.
The agreements signed by Yeşilgöz and a Namibian official aren’t very substantial yet: they’re just a declaration of intent. Nonetheless, the State Secretary believes that such accords are critical to reach today. “You’re missing out on opportunities if you’re not at the table in the first round.” That is something we cannot afford.”
Hydrogen is a big deal for polluting industrial enterprises. Tata Steel intends to transition to it in this manner in the future. The steel plant in IJmuiden now runs on coal and is the Netherlands’ greatest industrial CO2 emitter.
Hydrogen is “the core of innovation for the coming years,” according to the State Secretary. She describes the Netherlands’ starting position as “excellent,” partially because the large gas network can later be used to carry hydrogen. “I believe that a new cabinet should seriously consider it and make investments.”
