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The Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA) has unveiled guidelines for green hydrogen production, aimed at simplifying the process for potential investors seeking to establish operations in Kenya.

EPRA Director-General Daniel Kiptoo unveiled the comprehensive set of guidelines designed to pioneer the green hydrogen sub-sector in Kenya, addressing the absence of a specific legal framework.

The guidelines serves as a roadmap for initiating green hydrogen production and utilization which includes defining sustainability criteria, streamlining approval processes, establishing a project monitoring framework, and fostering research and development in the field.

Hydrogen derivatives

“These guidelines will facilitate the promotion of green hydrogen and its derivatives, promoting the production and safe handling of clean energy. This initiative could significantly enhance Kenya’s renewable energy sector, potentially leading to job creation, economic growth, and technological innovation,” Kiptoo said.

With several investors already approved for the development of green hydrogen and its derivatives, the government is further incentivizing this sector by creating a green hydrogen atlas and introducing the prospect of Special Economic Zones.

These zones, which can be gazetted upon investor interest, offer attractive benefits like tax incentives, making the sector even more appealing to potential investors.

In November 2022, Kenya unveiled a deal to expedited a 300MW green ammonia project, set to be constructed by Australia’s Fortescue Future Industries (FFI) in Naivasha, near the Olkaria geothermal field, with FFI’s final investment decision expected last year.

Kenya, leveraging its abundant renewable energy resources from solar, wind, and geothermal power, which constitute 92 per cent of its electricity supply, is poised to establish a thriving clean energy industry focused on green hydrogen.

This production process utilizes renewable energy to extract hydrogen from water without disrupting existing electricity supply infrastructure.