Namibia’s ambitious green hydrogen project in the heart of the Dorob National Park, the Daures Green Hydrogen Village, aims to boost the domestic economy and contribute to the global green fertiliser market by exporting an anticipated 352 000 tonnes of fertiliser by next year. Meanwhile, the project’s hydrogen output has notably increased compared to its initial capacity, while ammonia production is set to increase exponentially.
As such, the Daures Green Hydrogen Village (DGHV) is positioning itself to become a leading exporter of green ammonium fertiliser as the project progresses toward its second development phase.
The project, for all intents and purposes, is complete with phase one of its pilot. This includes on-site agricultural production and the current installation and commissioning of the hydrogen and ammonia-generating equipment.
Chief executive officer of Daures Green Hydrogen Village Jerome Namaseb noted that the first phase of the pilot project focuses on the production of hydrogen and ammonia, to scale up to commercial production. “In the initial phase, we are realising hydrogen and ammonia production, with hydrogen output targeted at 18 times our initial capacity, and ammonia production set to increase 100-fold,” he said.
He added that the success of this phase lays the groundwork for subsequent advancements in the project. A key milestone for the DGHV project came recently with the securing of an endorsement from the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO). This endorsement, granted after high-level discussions at the United Nations, paves the way for Namibia to produce green fertiliser on a large scale.
“This endorsement will play a crucial role in enabling us to realise the production of green fertiliser, helping not only Namibia but also addressing global demand for sustainable agriculture solutions,” Namaseb noted.
Looking ahead, DGHV aims to develop a 100-megawatt fertiliser production facility as part of its next phase. While the project development process is ongoing, the facility is designed to expand as the green hydrogen industry matures. Eventually, the plant will be capable of producing over 180 000 tonnes of hydrogen and one million tonnes of green ammonia, thereby positioning Namibia as a significant player in the international green fertiliser market. DGHV is located within the Daures constituency in the Erongo region. The DGHV is a green hydrogen project that benefits from the natural resources available in Namibia.
A mechanical engineer at the DGHV, George Hamukoshi, explained that ammonia is one of the essential compounds quietly powering much of everyday life. You might not see it, but it plays a key role in things like detergents used at home to keep spaces clean. But ammonia’s reach goes far beyond household chores. Hamukoshi added that, in industries like mining, ammonia is a critical ingredient in explosives, helping to blast open pits and extract valuable resources from deep within the earth. And perhaps most significantly, it’s a cornerstone in the production of fertilisers supporting the global agricultural system and helping to feed billions of people.
“Here at our green ammonia plant, we’re working to create ammonia sustainably. If you take a look around, you’ll see some of the key components that make this possible. Right here, we have the electrolyser, which produces green hydrogen by splitting water, using renewable energy. Over there is our nitrogen preparation unit, responsible for extracting nitrogen from the air,” he said. Hamukoshi noted that to produce green ammonia, they combine two elements which are green hydrogen and nitrogen. When these elements combine through a chemical process, they form ammonia just like the kind used in fertilisers and other industrial applications, but this is created with minimal carbon footprint.
“If you look to your right in the warehouse, you will see where we generate the nitrogen. On your left, you will notice the systems involved in preparing our green hydrogen. Together, they form the heart of our clean ammonia production process, paving the way toward a more sustainable future,” he said.