The main competition in these industrial sectors is between direct electrification and use of green hydrogen. The cost of green hydrogen is still too high and as a result, green hydrogen value chain of products is a lot less competitive.
The large-scale use of green hydrogen in these areas is still a long way off, Prof Dmitri Bessarabov, director of the HySA Infrastructure Center of Competence for Hydrogen Strategy of the Ministry of Science and Technology of South Africa, said at the Regional to Global conference, held on January 30, 2025, in the capital of Mauritius, Port Louis.
According to Prof Bessarabov, the excitement around the hydrogen industry has begun to consolidate to reach market maturity and de-risk future investment. Technologies for production and transportation of green are only now crystallizing that may have commercial applications for domestic use and export in the future. “Hydrogen is a long-term game and a long-term responsibility. It has indisputable niche for de carbonization , but still a lot more innovation is needed. Therefore, at the current stage, it is more important to focus on international cooperation and human capacity building and training, developing commercilasetion and policy frameworks “ , Bessarabov emphasized.
In his opinion, addressing the problems of electricity shortages and aging grid infrastructure should play a key role for African countries. And only after these problems are resolved will interest in commercial green hydrogen production grow in the region.
