- Djibouti and CWP Global have entered an MoU for a 10 GW renewables and green hydrogen project
- The wind and solar PV powered facility will be strategically located at the Horn of Africa
- Its location makes the project a potential candidate to make the Horn of Africa a major player Power-to-X player
- Green hydrogen and ammonia produced here can be shipped to international markets, according to the project vision
Africa’s Djibouti has unveiled plans to host a 10 GW renewable energy and green hydrogen hub as it entered a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with CWP Global which could make the country a major exporter of green hydrogen and ammonia, along with generating renewable energy.
Powered by multiple GWs of wind and solar PV, the project is planned to be strategically located at the Horn of Africa where Djibouti operates the Port of Djibouti, one of the world’s busiest shipping routes.
Djibouti’s Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources (MERN) believes the project has the potential to make the Horn of Africa become a major player in the Power-to-X domain due to its geographical location, while contributing to the socio-economic development of East African nations lying around the Horn of Africa.
“The proposed project by CWP Global in Djibouti and Ethiopia will consist of large-scale multi-gigawatts of green electricity, powering downstream green hydrogen and ammonia production facilities. Its preliminary analysis suggests that such a project will require an investment of tens of billions of dollars,” stated the ministry.
CWP Global said it has a clear action plan with the Government of Djibouti for the proposed project that it sees as enabling the African nation’s energy diversification while also providing secure potable water supplies to the local communities. It will also ‘open the door to emerging international markets for green hydrogen and derivatives, including green ammonia’.
“It is also critical to us that the project is aligned with Djibouti’s ‘Vision 2035’ economic plan, which prioritizes closer cooperation with regional neighbors, including Ethiopia, where there is great scope for collaboration on green energy, and an opportunity to build a thriving new commercial hub at the mouth of the Red Sea,” said CWP Global Chairman, Mark Crandall.
CWP has several other renewable energy and green hydrogen projects of gigantic proportions to its credit, including the 26 GW Australian Renewable Energy Hub (AREH) with bp as the majority stakeholder.
In mid-2022, it also entered a framework agreement with the Government of Mauritania for 18 GW wind and 12 GW solar powered green hydrogen project (see $40Bn Green Hydrogen Project Moves Forward). In all, CWP counts its under development portfolio as exceeding 140 GW.
