Image credit: Fertiglobe
A green hydrogen project in Ain Sokhna Egypt has been commissioned by project owners Fertiglobe, Scatec, Orascom Construction and The Sovereign Fund of Egypt.
The launch of the Egypt Green hydrogen facility took place at the United Nations COP27 Climate Change Conference in Sharm El Sheikh and marks an important milestone in the development of a green hydrogen ecosystem in Egypt and the broader African region.
The facility is the first integrated green hydrogen plant in Africa, and, when fully developed, will consist of 100MW of electrolyzers, powered by 260MW of solar and wind.
The facility will deliver up to approximately 15,000 tons of green hydrogen as feedstock for production of up to 90,000 tonnes of green ammonia per year in Fertiglobe’s existing ammonia plants in Ain Sokhna. The hydrogen tie-ins have already been installed at Fertiglobe’s plants.
Currently, the partners are testing the polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) electrolyzer for the first phase of the project with the aim of reaching Final Investment Decision in 2023.
According to Ahmed El-Hoshy, CEO of OCI N.V. and co-owner of Fertiglobe, Ain Sokhna has a strategic position close to the Suez Canal Economic Zone with the possibility of using renewable electricity to develop an industrial hub near global shipping lanes.
Ahmed El-Hoshy, CEO of OCI N.V. and co-owner of Fertiglobe, said: “This project is…an exciting milestone for Fertiglobe, as it marks the first of many stages in the execution of our hydrogen roadmap.
“Adding the electrolyzer to our state-of-the-art ammonia facilities and infrastructure in Egypt, we are fully leveraging our existing ammonia production and global distribution infrastructure, including OCI’s Port of Rotterdam ammonia import terminal.
“We aim to meet the increasing demand for large-scale low-carbon hydrogen and ammonia, as the need for more sustainable energy sources becomes more urgent. Together with our partners in the project we are acting on this need and bringing the hydrogen future to life.”
Ayman Soliman, CEO of The Sovereign Fund of Egypt, said: “This project is a showcase of transitioning from pledges to implementation…Our pipeline of projects in the green energy field capitalizes on Egypt’s ideal location with its unique renewables profile and proximity to markets with renewables deficits to realize our shared goal of emissions reduction.”
