(Nouakchott / Sydney) – The government of Mauritania and Australian renewable energy project developer CWP Global have reached an agreement to build a Power-to-X project. According to the company, the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) creates the conditions for the development of the world's largest project to produce hydrogen and its derivatives for the global market using electricity from renewable energies.

Under the name “AMAN”, wind and solar power plants with an output of 8.500 gigawatts are to be built on an 30 square kilometer desert area in the north of the country within the next six years. It is said that the location with a stable desert climate is ideal for the power plants. The Mauritanian government has “opened the door to international investors” and wants to speed up the development and approval process.

The project will transform the Mauritanian economy, creating thousands of new jobs and a “stable export factor,” says Mark Crandall, founder and chairman of CWP Global. Exports would generate billions of dollars and give the population and economy access to electricity and water. Investments are estimated at $40 billion.

CWP is also involved in the Asian Renewable Energy Hub (AREH) in Australia. There, the company is developing a 26 gigawatt solar and wind power plant complex together with the green hydrogen manufacturer Intercontinental Energy, the wind turbine manufacturer Vestas and Pathways Investments for 36 billion Australian dollars (25,6 billion euros). The site is an area of ​​6.500 square kilometers in the Pilbara region, Western Australia. Supported by the Australian central government, the first section with 15 gigawatts of capacity is scheduled to go into operation at the end of this decade. A portion of the proceeds goes to the Pilbara region's major energy consumers, particularly the mining industry. However, the majority of the electricity generated is used to produce green hydrogen for the domestic and export markets (we reported).

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CWP wind farm in Australia / © CWP Global

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Signing of the MoU between Abdessalam Mohamed Saleh, Minister of Oil, Mines and Energy (left) and CWP founder Mark Crandal / © Ministère du Pétrole, des Mines et de l'Énergie