Scatec of Norway has announced proposals to build a green hydrogen plant in Ain Sokhna, Egypt, in collaboration with Fertiglobe and the Egyptian Sovereign Fund. The electrolyser will be 50 MW to 100 MW in size. The project, which will be created as part of Scatec’s “Power to X” plan, will produce green hydrogen for use as a feedstock in the creation of green ammonia. The plant will be Egypt’s first attempt to establish itself as a regional green hydrogen hub.
The factory will be built, operated, and owned by Scatec, which will also hold a controlling investment in the project. It will sell the green hydrogen to a Fertiglobe subsidiary, which is a joint venture between Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. and OCI to produce ammonia. Scatec intends to complete its investment plans in 2022. Regulatory clearances and authority to extract renewable electricity from the grid are pending, but the facility is expected to start commercial operations in 2024. The company stated that it intends to create more solar PV and wind power plants in Egypt in the future to help the country’s hydrogen goals.
In July 2021, Scatec had grid-connected and began commercial operation of a 55 MW solar farm in Ukraine’s Cherkasy area. The project would receive a feed-in-tariff payment and is estimated to produce around 64 GWh of electricity per year. The solar plant is designed to last for more than 30 years and it will also provide clean energy to over 28,000 families each year. This is Scatec’s fifth project in Ukraine since its entry into the country in 2017.
REGlobal’s Views: Egypt has a vast potential for both wind and solar, and is attracting many global players to deploy green power projects in this resource-rich country. These solar and wind projects are ideal sites to set up green hydrogen projects at competitive prices.
