Algeria is planning to develop green hydrogen as a key part of its economic diversification strategy, aiming to use its strong renewable energy potential and proximity to Europe to establish a role in the emerging clean fuel market, A1 Majalla reported.
The country’s extensive desert regions offer favourable conditions for solar power generation, while its northern Mediterranean coastline provides geographical access to southern Europe. These advantages could help Algeria produce renewable hydrogen for domestic use and export markets.
Green hydrogen is produced by using renewable electricity, such as solar power, to split water into hydrogen and oxygen through a process called electrolysis. The availability of abundant, low-cost electricity is a major factor in determining whether production can compete economically.
Algeria’s desert areas receive around 3,500 hours of sunshine annually. The country also has significant wind energy potential, with estimated generation capacity of about 35,000 megawatts (MW). However, developing these resources into commercial hydrogen production will require careful planning, solutions to structural challenges and substantial, long-term financing.
As Africa’s largest country by area and the world’s tenth largest, Algeria has geographical advantages that could support its ambitions in renewable energy. A central part of its export strategy is the 3,300-kilometre SoutH2 Corridor, a planned pipeline network intended to transport green hydrogen from North Africa to Europe.
“Algeria is not merely a potential supplier,” said Mohamed Ghazli, an Algerian energy transition expert based in Germany. “It is the closest and safest option for Europe through the SoutH2 Corridor project.”
The proposed corridor will connect hydrogen production areas in Algeria and Tunisia with Italy, Austria and Germany. Project backers aim to provide annual hydrogen import capacity of more than 4 million tonnes, making extensive use of existing infrastructure converted for hydrogen transport.
Operations are scheduled to begin in the early 2030s. If developed as planned, the corridor could provide Algeria with a major route into the European hydrogen market, although achieving that potential will depend on investment, infrastructure development and the ability to produce hydrogen at competitive costs.
