By Staff Reporter
Namibia’s plans to produce fertiliser locally using renewable energy have received major boost after SDG Namibia One and Enersense Energy Namibia signed a development funding agreement for the Dâures Green Fertiliser Project in the Erongo Region.
SDG Namibia One, part of Climate Fund Managers’ Climate Investor Three Fund, has committed up to US$3.6 million (about N$60 million) towards the project’s development, with additional development funding provided through the European Union’s Global Gateway and Invest International.
The agreement is expected to move the project closer to commercial production, with financial close targeted for the second quarter of 2028 and commercial operations planned for the first quarter of 2030.
Once operational, the project is expected to produce up to 20,000 tonnes of green ammonia and 80,000 tonnes of ammonium sulphate fertiliser annually, supplying local and regional markets.
The project will be located in the Dâures constituency, about 50 kilometres inland from Namibia’s Atlantic coast.
It will use the area’s solar and wind resources to generate renewable electricity for the production of green hydrogen.
The planned infrastructure includes 60 megawatts of solar photovoltaic generation, 10 megawatts of wind generation and a 65 megawatt-hour battery storage system.
This renewable power will supply a 40MW electrolysis facility, where green hydrogen will be produced before being converted into green ammonia and ultimately fertiliser.
The project is expected to avoid approximately 48,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions annually by replacing conventional fertiliser production based on grey ammonia.
It is also expected to create up to 115 permanent jobs, particularly significant for the rural area where employment opportunities remain limited.
The funding will support several critical development activities, including front-end engineering design, market development, permitting, environmental and social studies, as well as efforts to turn expressions of market interest into bankable offtake agreements.
Mercia Geises, chief executive officer of Namibia Hydrogen Fund Managers, said the project fits strongly within Namibia’s ambitions to build a green industrial economy by using its renewable resources to produce important agricultural inputs locally.
She said producing low-carbon fertiliser in Namibia could reduce dependence on imports, strengthen agricultural value chains and contribute to food security.
Martin Nambundunga, interim chief executive officer of Daures Fertilizer Solutions, said Namibia could not achieve true food security while remaining dependent on expensive fertiliser imports.
“A country cannot truly be independent if it cannot feed its own people,” Nambundunga said.
He said the project would make use of otherwise unfarmable desert landscapes to manufacture fertiliser locally while creating jobs, supporting local industries and improving livelihoods.
Namibia and the wider Southern African Development Community remain heavily reliant on fertiliser imports and face a significant supply deficit.
The developers believe domestic production could strengthen regional supply chains while reducing the carbon footprint of agricultural production.
The commercial project builds on Enersense’s Dâures Green Hydrogen Village pilot programme at the site.
Approximately US$17.7 million (about N$295 million) has already been mobilised for pilot and proof-of-concept activities, with support from the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research, the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation, the United Kingdom Government and Enersense.
The pilot is expected to produce Namibia’s first locally manufactured green fertiliser by the fourth quarter of 2026. Its operational data will be used to guide the development and optimisation of the larger commercial facility.
The Dâures project is the fourth investment by SDG Namibia One in Namibia, following investments in Hyphen’s green hydrogen project, HyIron’s Oshivela green iron project and the Zhero Molecules Walvis Bay green ammonia project.
The development is being positioned as one of Southern Africa’s first commercial-scale green fertiliser projects, combining renewable energy, green hydrogen and agricultural production in an effort to create greater local value from Namibia’s natural resources.
