There’s so much to talk about...when it comes to green hydrogen that we have decided to host a series of Fireside chats. For this first session, we will be discussing some of the challenges that green hydrogen projects face according to the professionals. We spoke to developers and project experts who, in collaboration with their partners, currently have green hydrogen projects underway.

AltGen’s Burning Questions

• What really is the biggest barrier facing Africa’s green hydrogen economy?
• Realistically, how long will it take Africa to fully develop and begin producing green hydrogen?
• Will carbon taxes cause destructive delays in Africa’s green hydrogen transition, or will they propel them forward?

First on AltGen’s panel of experts, is Davin Chown, MD of Genesis Eco-Energy. Davin has an embedded knowledge of the energy landscape, as well as political and ESG environments impacting power projects in southern Africa. And, perhaps most importantly, he says it how it is. The second panellists are WKN Windcurrent’s Power-to-X Programme Manager, Akhil Woodraj. Finally, we spoke with Chariot Energy Group’s Laurent Coche, CEO of Chariot Green Hydrogen, and Guillaume De Kleijn, Senior Advisor. Additional comments and context were provided by Tom Dopstadt, Legal Business Development Manager at Yamna and Olaf Marting, CEO at Ekonami.

Top challenges shortlisted by our Panellists

Today we’ll be tackling the first challenge…communication. This Fireside Chat is the first in a series of four.

1. Communication

2. Overload of Information

3. Policy and Legislation

4. Finding Skills at Scale

Communication: ‘Language Barriers and Perceptions’

Our panellists all notably identified a lack of clear and comprehensible communication as one of the key obstacles to the development of green hydrogen projects. Stakeholders from different spheres in the industry are all having the same conversations but in “different languages”.

“There is often a lack of understanding between the finance houses and the engineering guys. They speak in different languages. Sometimes you need to dilute the complexity of the information that needs to be communicated in order to bridge the gap between these two worlds so that they can understand their respective risk profiles.”

Olaf Marting, CEO - Ekonami  

These conversations need to happen at every level if any sort of collective coordination is to occur. This includes amongst government officials when it comes to the implementation of meaningful policy and legislation. (Read more about the role of legislature in AltGen’s third Fireside Chat.)

“In order for considerable movement to be gained in the green hydrogen sector in South Africa, we need a coordinated effort from government and various stakeholders to ensure policies aid the implementation of projects.”

Akhil Woodraj, Power-to-X- Programme Manager - WKN Windcurrent

Bridging this ‘language’ gap that exists between the various stakeholders in the industry is crucial in streamlining the decision-making processes that ultimately control whether a project will see the light of day or not.

So how do we do this?

Possible Solutions as Outlined by our Panellists

1. Let’s agree to agree

“Dialogue is about listening, not about answering. Rather than constantly listing challenges to green hydrogen projects, we need to seek to understand what we are aiming for and discuss how we can achieve it collectively.”

Priscilla Gibson, United Kingdom Managing Director - AltGen

Humans tend to focus on the issues that evoke the biggest reactions, but often the problem is rooted in a lack of attention being paid to foundational aspects of a project. This is highlighted by Yamna’s Tom Dopstadt.

“I would like to see the definition of green hydrogen to converge across different jurisdictions over time. This would benefit many market stakeholders by allowing them to comply with a single set of criteria rather than multiple ones. Convergence of criteria is crucial because they impact project design and the price of green hydrogen.”

Tom Dopstadt, Legal Business Development Manager - Yamna

Something as simple as agreeing on a definition of green hydrogen could simplify a number of processes in the project lifecycle, particularly when it comes to policy. We all need to agree on a common language of communication, or alternatively, need to invest in people who can act as translators of a sort. This is where something like GH2’s Green Hydrogen Standard comes into play. (Read more about the role of legislature in AltGen’s third Fireside Chat.)

“Green hydrogen is fundamentally changing the way that we understand the world. Only project leaders skilled in facilitating open dialogues, checking their biases, and productively moving conversations forward, will be successful.”

Priscilla Gibson, United Kingdom Managing Director - AltGen

2. Develop strong partnerships

Solutions to creating a more sustainable and less destructive way of living in the world have been and are still being found in the natural world. A quote from Rachel Carlson’s Silent Spring comes to mind; “In nature, nothing exists alone.” Partnership between all facets of these projects is essential.

“Although hydrogen is still a relatively nascent industry, overcoming some of the main challenges will require strategic partnerships along the full hydrogen value chain.”

Laurent Coche, CEO - Chariot Green Hydrogen

3. Approach the issue wholistically

Much like Yamna, Chariot Energy Group believes in both the viability and the necessity of a green hydrogen ecosystem within the communities that these projects are set to be constructed in. Developing understanding through consistent and continuous communication with key community stakeholders such as government and other developers is one way to go about this.

“You can announce all these projects but if you don’t start working with government and your competitors, your colleagues in this industry, development banks, and other stakeholders to put these local content plans in place, you’re eventually going to get stuck. We need to understand what the different socio-economic development plans are for these countries and how we can we best fit into them.”

Guillaume De Kleijn, Senior Advisor - Chariot Green Hydrogen

4. Invest in your people

A single golden thread of logic that continues to run through the conversations we are having with players in the green hydrogen space regardless of their geography, is the importance of investing in people.

“There is no other choice but to grow people.”

Davin Chown, CEO - Genesis Eco-Energy

Final thoughts…

With robust climate change mitigation mechanisms and policies on the horizon, decarbonising Africa’s energy intensive industries has never been more crucial from an economic standpoint.

What the world needs is a people-focused approach to the development of energy solutions, led by professionals who exhibit Level 5 leadership skills. The climate crisis, although deeply reliant on economic factors, is not a country-specific issue, it is a human issue. One of the oldest and most difficult challenges that humans face daily, is communication.

If we are to achieve any success in the global mission for net-zero, we need to slow down, take a step back, and really listen to one another. Problems are solved using the whole brain. The effectiveness of the collective is far greater than that of the individual.