ECOWAS Expresses Commitment Towards Achieving West Africa’s Renewable Energy Target

Michael Olugbode in Abuja

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has expressed its commitment to emplacing needed infrastructure that would ensure that the regional renewable energy target is achieved.

Speaking at the capacity building workshop for private sector actors on green hydrogen, the regional body said its plan is to produce 0.5 million of tonnes of green hydrogen per year by 2030.

The Regional Coordinator for Renewable Energy and Green Hydrogen at West African Science Service Centre on Climate Change and Adapted Land Use (WASCAL), Dr Bruno Korgo, noted that the region has huge potentials in terms of renewable energy like solar, wind, hydrogen and so on.

Korgo said that this potential constitutes a good basis to go for green hydrogen production because it is considered as the vector for decarbonising a lot of sectors across the world.

He said: “In the West African Green Hydrogen Policy, the target is for West African region to be able to produce by 2030, 0.5 million of tonnes of green hydrogen per year and by 2050, 10 million tonnes per year. This policy has been adopted by our heads of state.

“But the ministries of energies have to work to make it happen and that is why we are partnering government and private sector to join hands so that we may reach out goal.

“This unique energy is today perceived as the energy of the future. The opportunity to produce, use and export green hydrogen to other demand centres appear like an opportunity for West Africa region to start now to think about green hydrogen to harness its potentials and also capture the future energy market that is coming with regard to green hydrogen demand.”

The Assistant Director in Nigeria’s Ministry of Power, Temitope Dina, said the federal government is ready to harness the immense potentials in green hydrogen to drive economic growth, energy security and environmentally sustainable West Africa.

Dina said this target has been marked by dedication, collaboration and a clear understanding of the pivotal role green hydrogen will play in the energy future.

According to Dina, “Green Hydrogen stands at the forefront of global transition to clean energy. It offers the promise of reducing carbon emission, diversifying our energy source and also fostering innovation.

“In our region, with its abundant renewable energy resource, green hydrogen could be a game changer. This could simulate our local economy, industries, create jobs and provide significant boost to our economies across West Africa.

“This workshop represents a critical opportunity for us to deepen our understanding of the green hydrogen technology, explore best practices and build the partnership necessary for the successful implementation of the green hydrogen policy and strategies.”

On his part, the Executive Vice Chairman of SIDIL Energy Alternatives Limited, Alhassan Dantata, said green hydrogen is the last option of the globe to transit to clean energy.

Dantata said Africa must play its role in achieving this milestone, stressing that: “Africa played different roles in the three past industrial revolutions, the role we played was that we were the catalyst because men and women were enslaved and our raw materials were taken away to develop other parts of the world.”

He added that: “But the beautiful part of this energy we are discussing about is that this is something you have to have your foot on the ground because Africa now has what you can’t take away. We have the wind; the sun and we have the water and you can’t take that away.

“We have the sun 365 days in a year. We have the wind because coming from the Sahara, we have the northeast trade winds that always keep the wind mines on 24/7 and so we got no excuse. We should be the frontrunners in green hydrogen.

“Africa should be about to export power through submarine cables just like we are importing bandwaves from Europe. We should be giving them power because we have the sun, the wind and the water.

“It is just our will. Do we have the political will, the right mindset and can we collaborate to make it happen. From what I have observed over a period of three to four years, the killer effect in Africa is just two – tribalism and religion. If we can overcome that, Africa will be great.”

The two-day workshop ends on Friday in Lagos.