On September 19, 2024, the first event of the Community of Practice (CoP) Green Energy & Environment of the PMI Germany Chapter e. V. took place, an exciting presentation that met with great interest.

Our guest was Prof. Dr. Stefan Liebing, an international expert in green energy and hydrogen, shared valuable insights on the development and challenges of green hydrogen projects in Africa. Prof. Liebing, who served as President of the German-African Business Association (Afrika-Verein der deutschen Wirtschaft) for 11 years, highlighted both the opportunities and the hurdles within this emerging field. 

He noted that only a handful of countries are truly suitable for large-scale green hydrogen projects, requiring not only political stability and security but also favorable natural conditions, such as strong wind, high solar irradiance, and well-equipped ports. Many projects are still in the feasibility phase, with ongoing wind and solar assessments and port expansions needed to support future capacities. 
 
Prof. Liebing also underscored essential success factors: long-term offtake agreements (spanning 10 to 20 years), secured financing, risk coverage, and incentives like emissions certificates to make pricing competitive with gas-based energy. 
  
One particularly promising market for green hydrogen is green steel production—for example, in Mauritania, which exports over 13 million tons of iron ore each year. 
 
Prof. Liebing also discussed a recent Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed with Mauritania to develop a large-scale green hydrogen plant, aiming for a production capacity of up to 8 million tons of green hydrogen or other renewable fuels. 

If you would like to continue the discussions about green energy and project management, you are welcome to join our Linkedin group https://www.linkedin.com/groups/12896651/ or contact us at cop-gee@pmi-gc.de