Africa primed to become global green hydrogen leader, landmark Masdar report finds

Africa primed to become global green hydrogen leader, landmark Masdar report finds

- Green hydrogen production on this scale would accelerate deployment of renewable energy across continent and increase electrification rate

- Report produced by Masdar and Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week with analytical support provided by McKinsey & Company

Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates: Africa could capture as much as 10 percent of the global green hydrogen market, helping to create up to 3.7 million jobs and adding as much as US$120 billion to the continent’s gross domestic product (GDP), according to a landmark report issued jointly by Masdar and its Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week (ADSW) platform on the sidelines of the 2022 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27).

Africa’s plentiful solar and wind resources could be leveraged to produce 30 to 60 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) of green hydrogen by 2050, about 5 to 10 percent of global demand, according to the report, “Africa’s Green Energy Revolution: Hydrogen’s role in unlocking Africa’s untapped renewables,” produced with analytical support provided by McKinsey & Company.

An African hydrogen industry with that production capacity would likely create 1.9 to 3.7 million jobs and boost GDP by as much as US$60 to 120 billion by 2050, the report finds.

Mohamed Jameel Al Ramahi, Masdar Chief Executive Officer, said, “This