Masdar, one of the world’s leading renewable energy companies, and Hassan Allam Utilities, the investment and development arm of Hassan Allam Holding Group, announced today that they have signed two Memorandums of Understanding with leading Egyptian state-backed organizations to cooperate on the development of green hydrogen production plants in the Suez Canal Economic Zone and on the Mediterranean coast.

The Memorandums of Understanding were signed in the presence of Mostafa Kamal Madbouly, Prime Minister of the Arab Republic of Egypt, Dr Sultan bin Ahmed Al Jaber, UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, Special Envoy for Climate Change and Chairman of Masdar, Dr Mohamed Shaker El-Markabi, Minister of Electricity and Renewable Energy for Egypt, and Dr Hala El Said, Minister of Planning and Economic Development and Chairperson of The Sovereign Fund of Egypt.

Amr Allam and Hassan Allam, Co- Chief Executive Officers of Hassan Allam Holding, were also in attendance, along with Mohamed Jameel Al Ramahi, Chief Executive Officer of Masdar. The Egyptian organizations concerned include the New and Renewable Energy Authority, the Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company, The Sovereign Fund of Egypt, and The General Authority for Suez Canal Economic Zone.

Mostafa Kamal Madbouly, Prime Minister of the Arab Republic of Egypt, stressed that the state is working to encourage investment in green energy projects, due to Egypt's potential to become an important pivotal and regional hub in this vital sector, which is expected to transform the global energy system during the upcoming period. These projects will also accelerate energy transition process in the region.

"In the first phase of the project, Hassan Allam Utilities and Masdar aim to establish a green hydrogen manufacturing facility, which would be operational by 2026, producing 100,000 tonnes of e-methanol annually for bunkering in the Suez Canal," he added. "The electrolyser facilities in the Suez Canal Economic Zone and on the Mediterranean could be extended to up to 4 GW by 2030 to produce 2.3 million tonnes of green ammonia for export as well as supply green hydrogen for local industries."

Masdar and Hassan Allam Utilities see Egypt as a hub for green hydrogen production, targeting the bunkering market, export to Europe, and boosting local industry. Egypt enjoys abundant solar and wind resources that allow generation of renewable power at a highly competitive cost –a key enabler for green hydrogen production.

Egypt is also located within close proximity to markets where demand for green hydrogen is expected to grow the most, providing robust opportunity for export. Driven by green hydrogen’s export potential, its ability to attract large-scale foreign direct investment and opportunities to contribute to the Government’s efforts to optimize generation costs and increase the share of renewables in the country’s energy mix to 42 percent by 2030, the Ministry of Electricity is currently revising its 2030 renewable energy strategy to include green hydrogen, and is developing a green hydrogen strategy, which is expected to be issued by October 2022.