Three global alliances apply for green hydrogen projects in Egypt

Three global alliances have submitted applications for projects for the production of green hydrogen in Egypt's Sokhna and East-Port Said regions as the North African country prepares to host the COP 27 summit next year, the Egyptian cabinet has said.

The three projects, to be located near the Suez Canal, could be implemented in parallel, said Suez Canal Economic Zone's chairman Yehia Zaki last week during a meeting with Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly and several ministers.

Egypt has put green hydrogen projects among its priorities, Madbouly said during the meeting whose goal was to review the settlement of the Suez Canal Economic Zone and the development of green hydrogen in the region.

Global demand for low-carbon fuels will increase substantially in the near future and this is an opportunity for Egypt to become a leader in the region for the production, use and export of green fuels, according to Zaki. The North African country has huge potential to produce renewable energy at competitive prices and its proximity to Europe, one of the key markets for clean energy import, as well as the availability of infrastructure for hydrogen export to Europe support the development of green hydrogen projects, Zaki noted.

Egypt could benefit also from another competitive advantage and become a global hub for supplying green fuel to ships as the Suez Canal accounts for about 15% of the global shipping traffic.

Earlier in November, Egypt's minister of petroleum and mineral resources Tarek El-Molla said during the COP 26 summit in Glasgow that the Arab country aims to reach 42% renewables in its energy mix by 2030, supported by an ambitious action plan for green hydrogen production that the government is devising currently. Egypt will focus on the expansion of blue hydrogen in the short and medium-term as a low-carbon fuel with the aim of moving to green hydrogen in the end.

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