Namibia is stepping deeper into the global clean-energy race with the commissioning of Africa’s first integrated green hydrogen facility at Walvis Bay, linking solar generation, hydrogen production, battery storage and refuelling infrastructure on one site.

Developed by Cleanergy Solutions Namibia, a joint venture between CMB.TECH and Ohlthaver & List, the facility uses a 5-megawatt solar park, a 5-megawatt proton exchange membrane electrolyser and a 5.9-megawatt-hour battery system. The 6.5-hectare site has about 7,000 solar panels.

The plant is designed to produce green hydrogen using renewable electricity rather than fossil fuels. Its early applications include dual-fuel trucks, industrial equipment, generators and railway operations, creating local demand before Namibia turns more heavily toward exports.

Walvis Bay becomes a test ground

The project is more than a hydrogen plant. CMB.TECH describes the facility as a “living lab” for an integrated hydrogen economy, with a hydrogen refuelling station and academy designed to develop local expertise.

That approach also addresses one of the industry’s biggest challenges: finding customers for green hydrogen. CMB.TECH is using the fuel in its own industrial operations, giving the project an initial off-taker rather than relying solely on future export demand.

Hydrogen can also be combined with nitrogen to produce green ammonia, opening a potential route into maritime fuel and international energy markets

Namibia eyes a bigger hydrogen economy

The Walvis Bay project is small compared with Namibia’s proposed large-scale hydrogen developments, but its significance lies in proving the technology and creating a domestic market.

CMB.TECH plans to expand the facility toward 250 megawatts and eventually 500MW, while broader plans include ammonia infrastructure at Walvis Bay and much larger solar-powered hydrogen and ammonia production in Namibia’s interior.

CMB.TECH is one of the largest listed, diversified and future-proof maritime groups in the world with about 250 seagoing vessels (including newbuildings): dry bulk carriers, crude oil tankers, chemical tankers, container vessels and offshore energy vessels.

Ohlthaver & List (O&L), founded in 1919 and headquartered in Windhoek, is Namibia’s largest privately held business group, with interests spanning food, retail, hospitality, fishing and renewable energy.

For Namibia, the bet is straightforward: turn abundant sunshine and wind into a new industrial export while cutting reliance on imported fossil fuels.