European Union (EU) commissioner for energy Kadri Simson is in Namibia this week, and will travel to South Africa next Monday to enhance the EU’s energy relations with these countries.

The visit to Namibia follows the endorsement of a roadmap for the EU-Namibia strategic partnership on sustainable raw materials value chains and renewable hydrogen by commission president Ursula von der Leyen and late president Hage Geingob in October 2023. 

The roadmap is supported by €1 billion in investments by the EU, its member states and European financial institutions. 

Simson will attend the Global African Hydrogen Summit in Windhoek, and participate in panel discussions on ‘Delivering Africa’s Energy Transition Through The Development Of The Global Energy Map’ today. 

She will also attend a ministerial panel on ‘Africa’s Hydrogen and Clean Energy Frontiers: The Industry’s Next Major Opportunities’ tomorrow. 

As part of the Summit she will attend the signing ceremony of several programmes funded by EU institutions and its member states to support the clean energy transition and hydrogen development in Namibia. 

On Friday and Saturday, the commissioner will be visiting a series of energy-related projects, including the ‘HyIron’ site for the production of green iron, and the Port of Walvis Bay, which the EU is supporting with a study to turn it into an industrial and logistics hub for the region. 

She will visit the Towards an Inclusive Design of the Renewable Energy Transition project, which aims to expand access to affordable and clean energy, especially in vulnerable communities. 

The commissioner has also planned a series of meetings with Namibian authorities, companies and civil society organisations.