Question NW1319 to the Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation

Reply:

a) In September 2021, the Cabinet approved the Hydrogen Society Roadmap (HSRM), which was released to the public by the Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation in February 2022. The HSRM maps out South Africa’s ambitions to leverage its endowment in platinum group metals and government’s investment in their local value addition to develop and deploy hydrogen related technologies to decarbonize key sectors of the economy in support of the country’s ambitions to reach net-zero emissions by 2050. On 14 February 2024, Cabinet approved the establishment of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Hydrogen to be led by the Deputy President, to ensure coordination across government and effective implementation of the HSRM.

b) The implementation of the HSRM seeks to promote a collaborative approach among key stakeholders from government, private sector, academia and civil society to achieve the following high-level outcomes:

• Decarbonization of the transport sector including road transport, rail and aviation.
• Decarbonization of the energy intensive industry, which includes steel and cement production, petrochemicals and power generation.
• A green and enhanced power sector that supports economic development.
• Local manufacturing of value-added components along the hydrogen and fuel cell value chain, leveraging on the intellectual property that government has funded through the Hydrogen South Africa Programme;
• Creation of a domestic and export market for green Hydrogen and derivatives such as ammonia, leveraging on the availability of land and renewable energy in the country; and
• A responsible and phased transition from grey to blue to green hydrogen.

In pursuing the above outcomes, the issues of gender, equality and social inclusion, as well as skills development will be prioritised.