Hyphen secures further off-take for Namibian mega-project

By Julian Atchison on February 07, 2023

Graphic visualisation of Hyphen’s renewable ammonia mega-project in Namibia, which has now secured off-take of over one million tonnes per year. Source: Hyphen Hydrogen Energy.
Click to learn more. Graphic visualisation of Hyphen’s renewable ammonia mega-project in Namibia, which has now secured off-take of over one million tonnes per year. Source: Hyphen Hydrogen Energy.

Hyphen has signed two off-take MoUs with an unnamed, “major” chemical company and Approtium (South Korean hydrogen producer) for off-takes of 500,000 tonnes and 250,000 tonnes of ammonia per year respectively. This follows on from an off-take agreement between Hyphen and German energy giant RWE signed in December last year for 300,000 tonnes per year, bringing the total off-take for their Namibian mega-project to just over one million tonnes of renewable ammonia each year. Hyphen is targeting a production capacity of one million tonnes per year in 2027, increasing to two million in 2029.

Although Hyphen’s primary focus is the supply of hydrogen into Europe, and Germany in particular, South Korea is expected to emerge as a key market in the green hydrogen sector, in which Approtium will be a major player. These partnerships with offtakers from various geographical regions firmly cement Namibia’s position as a key emerging player in the global green hydrogen industry.

Hyphen Hydrogen Energy CEO Marco Raffinetti, in his organisation’s press release, 2 Feb 2023

Fortescue: Daures Green Hydrogen Village

Click to learn more about the Daures Green Hydrogen Village, a new renewable ammonia project in Namibia.
Click to learn more about the Daures Green Hydrogen Village, a new renewable ammonia project in Namibia.

Also in Namibia, FFI and Enersense Energy Namibia (EEN) will explore a partnership on the Daures Green Hydrogen Village – a renewable hydrogen & ammonia production project in central Namibia. Ground will be broken next month on phase one, which features 1 MW of renewable energy generation and 500 kW of electrolysers.

At full scale (scheduled for 2029-32), 1 GW of renewable energy and 420 MW of electrolyzers will produce over 350,000 tonnes of ammonia per year. The Daures consortium has already signed an off-take agreement with Zimbabwe-based Sable Chemicals, who will use the ammonia for the production of ammonium nitrate fertiliser. Sable are currently evaluating a re-starting renewable ammonia production in Zimbabwe after an eight-year hiatus, and currently import all their ammonia (fossil-based) from South Africa. AfriTin mining is also considering the use of hydrogen & ammonia to decarbonise operations at the Uis tin mine.

As part of the new agreement, FFI will evaluate the overall project and provide guidance during the initial stages. FFI is currently exploring a 25 GW pipeline of renewable energy generation and a 300 MW, geothermal ammonia project in Kenya.