Africa-Press – Namibia. NAMPORT chief executive officer Andrew Kanime says the ports authority aims to position Namibia’s harbours to become industrial centres through the push for green hydrogen.
He said this on Tuesday during European Union (EU) commissioner for international markets Thierry Breton’s visit to the port at Walvis Bay. Breton was accompanied by members of the EU cabinet. The delegation, which was also accompanied by captains of industries from Europe and Namibia, was briefed by Kanime on the port’s operations.
He touched on the challenge of the trade and cross-border processes of Namibia’s trade corridors, which he said are largely paper based, which causes a delay in turnaround times and high transaction costs.
He said certain sections of the corridors require the introduction of a smart security system to enhance the safety of cargo while in transit. “In order to address these challenges, Namport is trying to roll out and implement a national single-window environment, which would digitise the processes and streamline costs.
“The project will require equity or loan funding, and the company was hoping to collaborate with the European Union in line with its digital infrastructure strategy,” he said.
Kanime touched on the fact that Namibia has a lot of sun, seawater and wind, thus making it one of the most attractive and cost-effective hubs for the production of green hydrogen, which is beneficial to Europe.
“Europe’s decision to shift the focus from its traditional suppliers of energy and to migrate to renewable and clean alternatives could therefore not have come at a more opportune time for Namibia’s goal to be the regional green hydrogen hub, and will certainly be catalysed by this increased demand and opportunities.
“We are therefore excited about the great prospects presented by this development. We have hence been seized with the task of ensuring that Namport is ably and timely positioned to provide the requisite support in the handling, processing, storage and export of green hydrogen molecules to the EU and other markets.
“This is aligned to our strategic intent of positioning Namibian seaports to become industrial centres in the country,” he said.
Kanime said to realise this, Namport has teamed up with the Port of Antwerp-Brugess to complement and collaborate on the development of the green hydrogen supply chain between Namibia and Europe, focusing on the port of Walvis Bay. Breton said he was impressed with the port’s operations, and is especially interested in value addition when it comes to water and energy.
“Namport is running a fantastic operation. It is amazing how you handle and process operations through all these corridors. We are looking at how to create added value, taking into consideration water, energy and the capacity to have refineries.
“We are ready to financially support projects like wind energy and green hydrogen, and eager to select and work with like-minded partners. We want to ensure long-standing relations that are safe,” he said.
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