Belgium pays royal visit to Namibia on theme of green hydrogen

King Philippe will travel to Namibia next week with energy minister Tinne Van der Straeten and several Belgian companies. The aim is to boost cooperation on green hydrogen.

With a coastline of more than 1,500km, ideal wind speeds and a high number of sunshine hours, Namibia is well placed to produce renewable energy from wind and sun. The south African country therefore has big ambitions, and aspires to become climate neutral by 2050. The country also wants to become one of the leaders in Sub-Saharan Africa in green energy, particularly green hydrogen. 

European countries want to ship green hydrogen in liquid form, as the realisation of green hydrogen domestically is not yet profitable due to insufficient available renewable electricity. King Philippe's visit to the country next week should highlight the expertise of Belgian companies and the renewable energy cooperation between Belgium and Namibia

Green hydrogen is seen as the green energy source of the future. Among other things, it can be used as fuel for ships or as a raw material for multiple industrial and chemical processes. By 2050, Namibia aims to produce 10-15 million tonnes of hydrogen annually.

In 2021, Van der Straeten concluded a strategic partnership with her Namibian counterpart to work together on green hydrogen. Belgian companies are also world leaders when it comes to expertise in the transition to renewable energy. One of them, CMB.Tech, already has a major project running in Namibia.

^{King Philippe of Belgium during an audience at the Royal Palace in Brussels with the former president of Namibia Hage Geingob © BELGA PHOTO HATIM KAGHAT}