Green hydrogen is steadily becoming a reality in Namibia, as the first green industrial combustible gas was recently produced in the country.
Although production has not reached full capacity, at only about 80kg per hour, HyIron Namibia aims to produce 215kg of green hydrogen per hour when their electrolyser is commissioned. HyIron Namibia chief executive and co-founder Johannes Michels last week explained to New Era that the green hydrogen is produced via electrolysis of water.
“In our case, we use the electricity generated in our PV Plant (25 MW) to split the water into its two elements, hydrogen and oxygen,” he stated.
HyIron, which was established through collaboration between Namibian and German companies, uses an innovative process to reduce iron ore in a rotary kiln with the help of green hydrogen, thus making the production entirely carbon-neutral. Ultimately, HyIron aims to rapidly scale the production of green iron, considering this production process is already economically competitive.
Michels added that in iron production, iron ore (FE2O3) needs to be “reduced” of its oxygen content.
“Traditionally, this is done with carbon, mostly from coking coal. When the Carbon (C) reacts with the oxygen (O) of the Iron ore, the offgas/waste is CO2. In our case, the produced hydrogen will be transported into our kiln. In the kiln the hydrogen (H2) reacts with the oxygen (O) in the iron ore, so that we get iron (FE) and water (H2O) as “waste” product,” Michels elaborated.
HyIron’s Oshivela plant produced hydrogen using a 12MW electrolyser unit supplied by China’s Peric Hydrogen Systems. Powered entirely by solar energy, the plant is soon anticipated to commence with producing green hydrogen-based direct reduced iron (DRI), targeting an initial output of 15 000 tonnes per year. Company executives expect to ramp up to two million tonnes annually by 2030. The plant runs exclusively during daylight hours, backed by a 25MW solar farm and 13.4MW of battery storage.
“We’re now in the process of gradually ramping up the electrolyser to full capacity, which will soon form the foundation for producing iron with zero emissions,” read a HyIron statement.
Towards the end of 2024, the HyIron-Oshivela Green Iron project signed its first-ever off-take agreement with German-based automotive technology company, Benteler.
“This is the first time a green product from Namibia has been sold for such a long-term period, setting the stage for future phases of development,” Michels said at the time.
The agreement entails the supply of up to 200 000 tonnes of Direct Reduced Iron (DRI) annually, produced using green hydrogen technology.
“About a year ago, we embarked on a journey to build something completely new. Despite the uncertainties, we felt safe in the hands of people who value Namibia’s youth as our greatest treasure,” said Michels.
At the announcement of the offtake agreement, Green Hydrogen Commissioner James Mnyupe highlighted the innovative financing strategies underpinning the project’s expansion.
“This green iron initiative not only bolsters Namibia’s economy, but also positions the nation as a key player in the global green energy transition,” Mnyupe said.