By Wallace Mawire
SDG Namibia One Fund, Namibia’s dedicated energy transition and green hydrogen infrastructure fund, today announced the signing of a Development Funding Agreement with Zhero Europe, a clean energy projects developer, to advance the development of the Zhero Molecules Walvis Bay Project, an industrial-scale green ammonia facility near Walvis Bay in the Erongo Region on Namibia’s central coast.
SDG Namibia One Fund (also known as Climate Investor Three Namibia) is managed by Climate Fund Managers (CFM), a climate-focused blended finance investment manager, in partnership with Dutch development finance institution, Invest International, and the Environmental Investment Fund of Namibia (EIF). The Fund is backed by the European Union Global Gateway investment strategy and Invest International. It has committed up to USD 5.15 million in development funding to enable Zhero to complete the development and feasibility activities required to progress the project toward a final investment decision, targeted for 2027. Commercial operation is expected in 2030.
Zhero Molecule Walvis Bay is Zhero’s flagship project in green molecules. Once operational, it is expected to produce 500,000 tonnes of green ammonia per year, avoiding approximately 1.2 million tonnes of CO₂ emissions annually. Alongside its contribution to the energy transition, the project will support Namibia’s broader socioeconomic development – creating approximately 6,000 jobs during construction and around 500 permanent roles, while also generating opportunities for local businesses and service providers across the value chain.
The project will be powered by an integrated renewable energy system comprising 3 GW of solar PV, 2.2 GWh of battery energy storage, a 1.6 GW electrolyser system and 110 km of new transmission infrastructure. A desalination plant is planned as part of the project’s water supply solution. Green ammonia produced by the Project is expected to serve global decarbonisation markets, including fertilisers, maritime fuels and industrial feedstocks.
Green ammonia is produced by combining green hydrogen, generated through electrolysis powered by renewable energy, with nitrogen extracted from the air. It is a zero-carbon fuel and chemical feedstock with applications across sectors including fertiliser production, maritime shipping and industrial processes. Green ammonia is particularly important for decarbonising these hard-to-abate industries, where few alternative zero-carbon solutions currently exist.
Darron Johnson, Regional Head of Africa at Climate Fund Managers, said: “Zhero’s project aligns strongly with Namibia’s ambition to build a competitive green hydrogen and ammonia industry, as well as with the mandate of our SDG Namibia One Fund. The site benefits from exceptional solar resources, ample land and direct access to deep-water export infrastructure at Walvis Bay, making it well-suited for industrial-scale green ammonia production. Through its blended finance structure, SDG Namibia One is providing early-stage development capital alongside Zhero needed to de-risk the project and prepare it for financial close, creating the conditions for private capital to invest at scale in the construction phase. We look forward to working with Zhero to bring this important project from development, through construction and into operation.”
Paolo Gallieri, Chief Operating Officer at Zhero said: “This development funding from SDG Namibia One will be additive to our own development funding investment. Given the deep understanding of the Namibian ecosystem that the team at the Fund bring and the blended-finance model they can augment, we very much regard this investment as pivotal to the success of this venture. Namibia has the natural resources, strategic location and national vision to become a global leader in green ammonia and hydrogen. With this support, we are strengthening our ability to deliver a world-class facility that can attract long-term investment, create economic opportunities for the country and contribute to global decarbonisation efforts.”
European Commissioner for International Partnerships, Jozef Síkela, said: “During my mission to Namibia, I saw first-hand how Global Gateway cooperation in renewable energy can translate into real industrial value. This project shows what that means in practice: thousands of jobs in Namibia, sustainable industrial development and a new clean-energy supply that can support Europe’s decarbonisation efforts.”
SDG Namibia One is a blended finance facility designed to mobilise public and private investment into Namibia’s green hydrogen and energy-transition sectors. It currently manages EUR 65 million in early-stage development funding from European donors and is raising additional capital to finance construction-phase investments.
