Hydrogen projects will require scaled desalination capability

From the newsletter

A new report by DECHEMA, a German scientific and technical society, emphasises the need for Namibia to scale up desalination infrastructure. As the Koichab Pan aquifer, a key water source, is projected to be exhausted by 2026, the report warns that without urgent investment, hydrogen exports could clash with local water needs.

• Electrolysis requires significant volumes of purified water, yet most hydrogen projects are planned in arid regions where freshwater is already scarce.

• Without desalination, many projects risk competing with households and other industries for limited water supplies, raising social tensions and undermining political goodwill.

More details

• The report, Kharas Region Water Infrastructure & Green Hydrogen Economy: Scenarios and Strategic Considerations, was published by DECHEMA in August 2025 as part of the GreeN-H2 Namibia project, funded by German and Namibian partners to guide sustainable hydrogen development. It argues that water availability is a key deciding factor for whether hydrogen projects succeed. 

• The study places the ||Kharas Region at the centre of Namibia’s hydrogen ambitions, describing it as both the launchpad for exports and the frontline of the country’s water crisis. The region is  home to  Hyphen Hydrogen Energy’s multi-billion-dollar development expected to supply millions of tonnes of green ammonia to global markets. The scale of this project, the report notes, makes desalination not only a local necessity but a global concern for hydrogen supply chains.

• The study warns that pressure is already visible in Lüderitz and Aus, key towns in the ||Kharas Region, which face limited supplies while preparing for rapid growth linked to hydrogen. Population inflows from hydrogen-related development are expected to accelerate demand, intensifying competition between households and industry. With demand set to exceed existing infrastructure by 2026, the report concludes that desalination is not optional but inevitable if Namibia’s hydrogen sector is to take root.

• Namibia’s challenges are far from unique. Across Africa, hydrogen frontrunners face the same tension between industrial expansion and scarce water resources.In Mauritania, the $40 billion Aman project is located deep in the Sahara, where groundwater is scarce and rainfall negligible. Like Namibia, its success depends on desalination, with affordability emerging as a concern for communities around Nouadhibou.

• Egypt faces a different equation. While the Nile remains the backbone of its economy, its hydrogen hub is planned around the Suez Canal where desalination should balance the demands of industry with the fast-growing needs of cities such as Suez and Port Said. 

• Meanwhile, South Africa’s Northern Cape, home to a hydrogen valley, is one of the driest regions on the continent. Meeting demand would require vast investment in Atlantic desalination and pipelines stretching hundreds of kilometres inland to towns such as Upington and Kathu, where shortages are already routine. Even Morocco, often seen as better resourced, has endured repeated droughts that strain agriculture and raise questions about reconciling hydrogen ambitions with food and water security.

• In this context, DECHEMA’s recommendations to Namibia carry continental relevance. DECHEMA argues that short-term measures such as modular desalination plants could help manage the immediate gap. Containerised units and water-saving practices could buy time until large-scale facilities come online. But these solutions are temporary, the report stresses, and cannot substitute for long-term investment in permanent seawater desalination.

• To enable state water utilities such as Namibia’s NamWater to fund large-scale desalination on their own, the report recommends new financing models to avoid delays that could stall hydrogen exports and local development alike. Suggested approaches include public-private partnerships, direct industry participation and blended finance.

• Beyond funding, the study also emphasises the importance of fairness, cautioning that without clear rules desalinated water could be priced beyond the reach of households if industry dominates supply. Transparent allocation frameworks, it argues, will be essential to ensure that communities benefit alongside industrial users, reducing the risk of conflict and strengthening social stability.

Our take

• Ensuring fair access to desalinated water will be the ultimate test of Africa’s hydrogen ambitions. Without transparent allocation and equitable pricing, green hydrogen risks losing its social licence before it scales.

• Water is an emotive issue in Africa and stakeholders will need to navigate it carefully. Missteps could trigger social tensions that undermine both hydrogen projects and political stability.

• Water scarcity creates a new opportunity for circularity on the continent, encouraging the recycling of wastewater and the integration of reuse systems into hydrogen value chains.