Mines and Energy Minister Tom Alweendo has rubbished allegations that the envisioned green hydrogen project is being developed in secrecy, saying the government continues to consult and inform the public widely about the project.
Speaking at a media briefing here on Friday during a visit by South Africa’s Minister of Electricity Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, Alweendo said the public is demanding the commercial details of the investments, however, there are certain agreements that have to be commercially confidential.
“Nobody is going to invest in your country if everybody knows investment details. Here I am, signing an agreement with you and clearly telling everyone this is what I have agreed. The other person who is coming to negotiate with the Government now knows exactly what I have negotiated. How does that make us look like a country?” he stressed.
Alweendo noted that what the project means to society and Namibia, the government needs to share with the public, noting that there have been various widely public regional and national consultations on green hydrogen to which everyone was invited.
“Because of the importance of the project and what it means to our economy I understand we have to have continued discussions to make the people understand what it is all about but to claim that it is being developed in secrecy is really not the case,” he said.
He further noted that Namibia and South Africa have agreed upon a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) geared towards the energy sector, including areas of interest in green hydrogen.
Namibia is setting up a large green hydrogen production project in the southern part of the country and has been described by experts as one of the top five locations in the world for the production of low-carbon hydrogen
Source: The Namibian Press Agency