Re-industrialising Saldanha Bay seems the name of the game as Freeport Saldanha (formerly SBIDZ) and ArcelorMittal South Africa (AMSA) hosted a local on-site visit on Monday 28 November.
The initiative’s aim was to showcase the region’s potential as an ideal green hydrogen investment destination in the Western Cape.
The re-industrialising Saldanha Day provided an overview of pilot projects earmarked for the region, demonstrating how the region will be a critical player and catalyst in supporting South Africa’s Just Energy Transition and Investment Plan by creating and developing a green hydrogen economy.
Visiting stakeholders included delegates from Freeport Saldanha, the Presidency and ISA, Western Cape Government, Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA), the Saldanha Bay Municipality, Infrastructure South Africa stakeholders, academia and private energy industry businesses, including Sasol, AMSA, Atlanthia, Mainstream, and Keren Energy.
The initiative forms part of the inaugural South Africa Green Hydrogen Summit (SAGHS) 2022 taking place in Cape Town this week. The conference ran from 28 to 30 November, with President Cyril Ramaphosa having given the keynote address Tuesday.
The summit forms part of the ongoing policymaking in South Africa centred around Just Energy Transition and the Investment Plan (JET-IP), tabled by President Ramaphosa at COP27 in November. JET-IP aims to accelerate the decarbonisation of SA’s economy, reducing carbon emissions and aligning with the new energy-orientated economic growth set out in the Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) of the Paris Agreement.
Kaashifah Beukes, Freeport Saldanha CEO, welcomed visitors at the Freeport’s Access Complex. “Today, we demonstrated why Saldanha Bay is the perfect investment location to develop a world-class, globally competitive, green hydrogen and derivatives production hub in the Western Cape province,” she said.
Beukes added that several reports have highlighted the region’s advantages for renewable energy supply crucial for the Just Transition.
“We have demonstrated our innovation and readiness to unlock these new economic opportunities and embark on an industrialisation strategy, using the potential infrastructure in creating sustainable growth prospects for the region and the country,” she said.
Mayor André Truter urged that the potential projects can leave a lasting legacy for locals. “Saldanha Bay is a people-centred municipality and we are busy with a legacy project that could fundamentally change the way our children will be positioned economically and environmentally,” he said.
“Saldanha Bay is perfectly positioned and ready to become not only the South African hub, but the African hub of green hydrogen, for understanding energy mix and the role local Government must play in this unbelievable journey.”
Truter added locals should not be forgotten in the realisation of the projects as “they are our most important asset in this country.”
