Germany to back 50 MW green hydrogen project in Algeria

German development bank KfW will provide financial support for a 50-MW pilot green hydrogen project in Algeria as part of a broader partnership between the two countries aimed at promoting the development of green energy.

The goal of the project is to gain technological expertise in the entire value chain for this new sector at local level, Algeria's Ministry of Energy and Mining said on Tuesday without disclosing more details about the project.

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The announcement was made following the fifth German-Algerian Energy Day forum that took place in the capital Algiers on Monday.

During the forum, Algerian energy minister Mohamed Arkab, the secretary of the German economy ministry Stefan Wenzel and around 300 representatives from politics, business and research from both countries discussed the importance of promoting investments and securing financing for renewable energy projects, as well as the deployment of low-carbon technologies and their role in achieving global climate goals.

The debate focused on the planned conversion and expansion of the gas pipeline corridor from Algeria via Tunisia, Italy and Austria to southern Germany, Germany's economy ministry said in a separate statement. Algeria aims to become a major producer of renewable hydrogen and export the green molecule to Europe via pipelines with an ambition to cover up to 10% of the continent's needs.

The planned conversion of the gas pipeline is supported by Italy, Austria and Germany which in May pledged to back the development of the 3,300 km (2,051 miles) hydrogen corridor, dubbed SoutH2 Corridor. The pipeline is expected to enable the import of more than 4 million tonnes of green hydrogen per annum from North Africa to key clusters of demand as early as 2030.