Page 16 - DMEA Week 40 2022

DMEA NEWS IN BRIEF DMEA

Including selections from NewsBase’s partner service

The Benghazi 1parliament said the agreements December 24, 2021, as had been planned earlier. vulnerable, and put a stop to the subsidies.
are illegal, as they were signed by a government bna/IntelliNews, October 3 2022 “President Malpass emphasized the impor-
that had no mandate. tance of integrating climate and development,
Both countries agreed earlier in 2019 to Cost of Nigeria’s gasoline as well as the need for an enabling policy and
establish an economic zone sharing a maritime regulatory environment alongside strengthened
border, but the move angered gas producers subsidy now higher than institutions in the energy sector,” a World Bank
Greece, Cyprus, Egypt and Israel. It is not clear statement said.
that the agreements signed on Monday will allow health, education and The Nigerian government has estimated
further movement towards establishing such a that it will cost the country NGN6.72 trillion
zone. Turkey has repeatedly said that no third defence budgets ($15.5bn) for the entirety of 2023. The Central
country has the right to intervene in its agree- Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has asked the govern-
ments in Libya. The petrol subsidy paid by the Nigerian govern- ment to “jettison the current fuel subsidy policy”
Turkey has supported the GNU under PM ment to help keep fuel affordable for the general due to the high cost to the economy.
Abdulhamid Dbeibah, whose legitimacy is dis- population is higher than the budgets for health, bna/IntelliNews, October 3 2022
puted by the Libyan parliament, which backs an education and defence ministries, The Punch
alternative administration. writes, in a piece examining calls to phase it out. Southern Africa well-placed
Libya and Turkey have strengthened their From January 2020 to June 2022, the gov-
ties in the past few months. Cruises between the ernment spent NGN3.92 trillion ($9bn) on the to become green hydrogen
two countries are due to start at the end of Sep- subsidy, while the budgets for education, health
tember, with visa cancellation expected. Turkish and defence were NGN2.28 trillion ($5.3bn), production, export hub,
exports are increasing and were estimated to NGN1.68 trillion ($3.9bn) and NGN3.06 trillion
have reached over $2bn by the end of 2021. ($7.1bn), respectively. Kearney report says
The countries signed a memorandum of The subsidy has come under fire from both
understanding (MoU) in August 2020 to final- within and without Nigeria, with some arguing Southern Africa has potential to become a global
ise 184 stalled Turkish construction projects in it takes a huge toll on the development of the green hydrogen production and export hub as it
Libya estimated to be worth $16bn. country -- a major oil producer -- and that such has ideal conditions for its production, a leading
Libya was plunged into chaos after the Arab funds would be better spent used on raising the management consultancy has said.
Spring in 2011 that ousted ex-dictator Moam- standard of living. Kearney partner Prashaen Reddy told South
mar Qaddafi, and was split between rival According to The Punch, the Nigerian African publication Mining Weekly in an inter-
governments – one in the east, backed by mil- Economic Summit Group believes that the view published on Monday, October 3, that the
itary commander Khalifa Hafter, and another, fuel subsidy is leading the country towards an region has favourable conditions to produce
UN-supported administration in the capital impending fiscal crisis. renewable energy, low demand and would be
Tripoli in the west. In September, the World Bank told Nige- able to store and export it to areas where the
The North African country is currently in ria that it would be ready to support Abuja in energy type is technically or economically
a state of uncertainty over the fate of the polit- phasing out the policy. According to World limited.
ical process in the light of its failure to conduct Bank president David Malpass, Nigeria should “The world’s steadily growing demand for
presidential and parliamentary elections on increase social assistance for the poor and hydrogen is expected to exceed supply by 2030,
making now an ideal time to invest,” Reddy said.
“Although Southern Africa has a major
opportunity to produce green hydrogen, the
region’s demand is projected to be lower than the
demand centres in Europe and Asia. For exam-
ple, South Africa, the region’s most industrialised
country, is projected to reach a demand of only
238,000 tonnes by 2030.”
Germany recently pledged $39mn to
Namibia for green hydrogen development.
Three EU countries have already expressed
interest in importing Namibian green hydrogen.
There is also interest in South Africa’s potential
to produce green hydrogen.
Global chemicals firm Sasol is entering into
an agreement with the Northern Cape Develop-
ment Agency to conduct a feasibility study for
green hydrogen production in South Africa’s
Northern Cape Province.
“Although southern Africa has a major
opportunity to produce green hydrogen, the
region’s demand is projected to be lower than
the demand centers in Europe and Asia,” Chi-
cago-based Kearney said in a report, “Green
hydrogen: Southern Africa’s time is now.”

P16 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 40 06•October•2022