A windfarm in Morocco
EU bets on Africa as hydrogen powerhouse
Renewables-rich continent has vast potential as supplier to the EU and other regions, but project developers face multiple challenges
The EU aims to import significant volumes of green hydrogen from Africa by 2030 but faces competition from China, the US and the Middle East amid growing interest in the continent’s largely untapped renewables potential. The EU aims to ramp up its imports of renewable hydrogen to 10mt/yr by 2030. “A fair chunk, 30–50% of what the EU requires, will come from Africa,” said Mourad el-Yaalaoui, chair of the board at investment firm Public Ventures. “Nonetheless, Africa will not place all its eggs in the EU basket or any other single basket.” The new generation of African leaders are formidable strategic thinkers and doers, he added. “Africa has an interest in doing business with Europe, but the
Also in this section
18 June 2025
The country’s green hydrogen sector can gain traction even as the global trade war rages and other headwinds hamper the sector, Mohsen al-Hadhrami, undersecretary of energy and minerals, tells Hydrogen Economist
18 June 2025
UK risks losing out on in race to secure hydrogen imports as its refusal to back ammonia cracking sinks $2.7b Immingham project
11 June 2025
China emerges as clear frontrunner as US growth stalls and Europe burdens its industry with labyrinthine regulations
30 May 2025
Pressure is growing on developers to prove the bankability of their projects in a challenging market for green hydrogen
