Egypt considers localising electrolyser manufacturing
Egypt's prime minister Mostafa Madbouly has met with representatives of a global alliance led by Belgian mechanical engineering company John Cockerill to discuss the localisation of electrolyser manufacturing in the North African country whose potential for green hydrogen production has attracted significant investor interest.
Other companies represented at the meeting include Norway's Scatec which has renewable energy and hydrogen projects in Egypt, Technip, Rely and Schlumberger, according to a Cabinet statement.
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During the discussions, Madbouly expressed his desire to collaborate with John Cockerill and the alliance, which are currently visiting Egypt, on establishing an industrial complex to produce electrolyser components for green hydrogen and green ammonia projects.
The initiative dates back to October 2023 when Madbouly met with John Cockerill's chief executive François Michel who expressed the company's intent to establish a project in Egypt to manufacture electrolyser components. Following the meeting, the prime minister promptly engaged with the General Authority for the Suez Canal Economic Zone to confirm the government's commitment to supporting the project.
Since the initial discussions last year, significant progress has been made in project studies, John Cockerill's Executive Board Member, Jean-Luc Maurange, noted during the latest meeting.
Ahmed Saad, Executive Director of the General Authority of the Suez Canal Economic Zone, stated that the authority plans to offer all legally approved incentives to speed up the establishment of the electrolyser components project and noted that officials have already begun talks with the global alliance to allocate the necessary land for the project.
As for the share of production intended for export, alliance officials confirmed their initial focus on the local market and the possibility of exporting if local project demands are fully met.