Namibia Plans Mixed Energy Supply as President Backs Development Needs

Namibia will pursue different sources of energy as it works to industrialise, President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah has said, stressing that the country needs enough power to support its development.

Nandi-Ndaitwah made the position known on Sunday during an interview at the ‘Unstoppable Africa’ conference in New York, organised by the United Nations and the African Union.

She said Namibia was still at an early stage of development and needed energy to support an economy built largely around minerals.

“We are at the initial stage of our development. As a country which is mineral-based, we are setting ourselves for industrialisation. For this to happen, we need energy,” she said.

The president’s comments came during a discussion on Namibia’s energy future and the place of the Hyphen Hydrogen Energy project in the country’s development plans.

Oil, gas and hydrogen

Nandi-Ndaitwah said Namibia’s energy needs could not be met by relying on a single source.

She said the country supports a mixed energy system and has a national goal of reducing emissions. However, she maintained that the energy transition should take account of the needs of developing countries.

“As a country we believe in mixed energy. We believe in reducing emissions; we have our own national target. But it's also true that energy transition should not happen at the expense of developing countries,” she said.

The president was responding to a question from Veronica Smith, chief executive of Critical Minerals Africa Group, who asked about the Hyphen green hydrogen project and Namibia’s plans for energy.

Nandi-Ndaitwah said green hydrogen was one of the projects Namibia could pursue, but the country had also discovered oil and gas.

“Green hydrogen is one of the projects we can talk about, but I have to mention that Namibia discovered oil and gas. For us, it's not a choice between green hydrogen and oil and gas,” she said.

Her position is that Namibia should develop all types of energy generation needed to meet its development needs.

The president also pointed to the country’s energy gap and that of southern Africa and the wider African continent.

Namibia’s development plans, she said, require energy at a time when the country is preparing for industrialisation.

The energy question also extends to the people who will work in the industries being developed.

Nandi-Ndaitwah identified skills development as another foundation of Namibia’s energy future, particularly as new industries emerge.

Training young Namibians

She said Namibia needed skilled workers in almost every sector, with particular needs arising from new industries.

The government has already linked skills training to the development of the hydrogen industry.

“When the Hyphen project was initiated, knowing that we don't have the necessary skills, a group of young Namibians were identified to be given scholarships to prepare them to work in the hydrogen industry,” she said.

The scholarships are intended to prepare the selected young Namibians for work in the hydrogen industry.

The Hyphen project is therefore being discussed alongside Namibia’s wider energy needs, including oil and gas, as the country plans for industrial development.

Nandi-Ndaitwah’s position at the New York conference was that reducing emissions and meeting development needs should be pursued together, with energy supply and skills training both required for Namibia’s industrial ambitions.