Green hydrogen: An opportunity or a fresh breath in the energy transition

SOUTH Africa’s energy transition is often framed through the lens of electricity, coal, and renewables and nuclear power.

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But there is a new kid on the block - green hydrogen production, which is emerging as one of the technologies poised to shape the future energy landscape. Green hydrogen is particularly valuable in sectors that are difficult to decarbonize through direct electrification. Its main applications include heavy industries like steelmaking, cement, and chemical production which we are needed for in the built environment, energy storage and in the maritime sector for fuel cells amongst others.

Hydrogen also presents opportunities to develop new export markets and industrial value chains. South Africa is seeking to sustainably exploit this technology for both economic revitalisation and climate resilience, these prospects are significant and we are positioning ourselves as a global hub for green hydrogen production, leveraging abundant solar/wind resources and platinum reserves.

The Department of Science and Innovation, launched the Hydrogen Society Roadmap, aiming to create a hydrogen-based economy.

The roadmap targets 500,000 tonnes of green hydrogen per year by 2030 and plans to deploy 10 GW of electrolysis capacity in the Northern Cape by 2030, expanding to 15 GW by 2040.

But the real measure of success will not simply be how much South Africa produces or exports this new resources. It will be whether its exploitation contributes meaningfully to jobs, skills development, and shared prosperity. This is why discussions around environmental and social safeguards are becoming increasingly central to South Africa’s hydrogen commercialisation agenda.

Large-scale industrial developments have not always delivered equitable outcomes for communities living near project sites.