Northern Cape positions itself as SA’s green hydrogen hub

Watch Shawn Modise, Acting CEO of the Northern Cape Economic Development, Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (NCEDA) at a recent hydrogen-water connection webinar

“We are looking at existing infrastructure as well as key policy frameworks that will enable us to really position the Northern Cape as a lead in terms of aggregation  of green hydrogen within the context of South Africa.“

So said Shawn Modise, Acting CEO of the Northern Cape Economic Development, Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (NCEDA) at a recent hydrogen-water connection webinar hosted by ESI Africa. 

Touching on how they are going to be facilitating scaling green hydrogen in the Northern Cape perspective, Modise said his confidence lies in three pillars.

“First and foremost, our designs are resource-conscious. We’re not drawing on scarce freshwater sources like rivers; instead, we’re looking at how best to leverage seawater, create circular economic opportunities, and ensure that the needs of both the production facility and the community are met.”

He said the second pillar is the element of integrated planning and considering social benefit.

Integration with the Southern Africa Power Pool must be climate-smart

He said the agency stressed to investors that deliberately oversizing both the desalination facility and renewable infrastructure is a strategic choice to secure long-term water and energy supply for communities, particularly in regions that have historically been underserved.

“I speak from a province that was birthed with the new democratic dispensation in South Africa and this is something that we need to make sure it becomes sort of the realities going forward for all of us collectively.”

He said the third element is government and policy alignment with strong support from both provincial and national leadership.

“But I must indicate that we’re also looking at this from a regional perspective, because we believe in unlocking the Southern African Development Community (SADC) corridor as a whole and ensuring full integration into the Southern Africa Power Pool.

“Of course, this must be done in a just and climate-smart way, with water resilience and sustainability forming the cornerstone of how we industrialise our regions. Ultimately, this is a key element in our development trajectory, and we are committed to embedding these three core pillars as part of how we progress.”

Cover photo:  angkhanpt]©123rf.com