(Casablanca / Morocco) – The Moroccan project developer Hydrojeel will receive €30 million from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) to build a plant for the production of green hydrogen. The plant will be located in the Jorf industrial zone, approximately 100 kilometers south of Casablanca. The hydrogen will then be processed into green ammonia.
Hydrojeel receives 30 million euros to develop production plants for hydrogen and ammonia. The signing of the agreement between Amine Houssaim, CEO of Hydrojeel and Innovx (front left) and Thomas Engelmann (Managing Director of the PtX Development Fund) took place in Casablanca in the presence of the German ambassador Robert Dölger and Janne Rajpar (Head of KfW Morocco). © Innovx SA
Hydrojeel was founded in February 2024 as a division of the Moroccan technology company Innovx SA, itself part of the private Mohammed VI Polytechnic University (UM6P). According to its own information, Innovx prevailed in the BMZ selection process against 98 other project proposals from seven countries. The "Jorf Hydrogen Platform" is being installed on behalf of the Moroccan Office Chérifien des Phosphates (OCP Group). The state-owned company is one of the world's largest manufacturers of phosphate products such as fertilizers and plans to produce 2026 tons of green ammonia annually from the end of 100.000. One year later, this figure should already be one million tons. According to Innovx, scaling up to three million tons is planned by 2032.
Morocco aims to provide around 2035 percent of the country's primary energy needs from renewable sources by 40. © KfW Development Bank
According to media reports, the OCP Group plans to invest 14 billion dollars in a "Green Ammonia Program" that will one day cover almost two percent of global ammonia demand. The green ammonia will primarily be processed into fertilizers that will help make food production in Morocco and other countries more climate-friendly and less dependent on imported fertilizers produced from fossil fuels, according to the BMZ. Until now, Russia and Belarus have been among the world's largest exporters of such fertilizers made from "gray" ammonia, which is mainly produced from natural gas.
The funding comes from the PtX Development Fund. They are part of the German-Moroccan Alliance for Climate and Energy. In this context, the BMZ is working with Morocco, for example, to establish suitable framework conditions for value chains related to green hydrogen and is promoting application-oriented research as well as training and further education for PtX applications.
OCP Africa is active in twelve African countries. According to the Middle East Institute, the group has a 54 percent market share in phosphorus products on the continent (as of 2020). © Middle East Institute (Washington)
"The start-up investment by the German PtX Development Fund enables Morocco to enter the production of green hydrogen and build an industry for sustainable downstream products," says State Secretary Jochen Flasbarth. This cooperation is a triple-win opportunity: "For production countries through the development of value chains in a future market, for Germany through stable and diversified supply relationships and for German plant manufacturers through export opportunities for modern technologies that are necessary for the development and operation of a green hydrogen industry."
The Power-to-X Development Fund
The goal of the PtX Development Fund is to provide non-repayable grants for industrial projects at various stages of the green hydrogen value chain that do not receive adequate financing on the market due to their innovative nature. This includes the production, processing, storage, transport, distribution, and application of Power-to-X technologies, as well as related renewable energy generation measures. The use of green hydrogen in local value chains is also supported.
The federally owned Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW) has made funds totaling EUR 2027 million available to promote Power-to-X markets in developing and emerging countries until the end of 270. © KfW / Rüdiger Nehmzow
The federally owned Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW) has made funds totaling EUR 2027 million available to promote Power-to-X markets in developing and emerging countries until the end of 270. KfW has founded Power-to-X D&G GmbH as the legal entity of the construct known simply as the "PtX Development Fund". KGAL Investment Management GmbH & Co. KG acts as fund manager.
Sustainable investments on an industrial scale that actively support local markets and the energy transition are eligible for funding. An "exclusion list" excludes, among other things, the promotion of fossil fuels and nuclear power as well as any conflicts over the use of water, land and electricity. A first investment by the PtX Development Fund was already signed in autumn 2024 as part of the Hamburg Sustainability Conference for an Egyptian hydrogen project.
Companies – including German ones – can apply for funding from the development fund for the next round until March 5, 2025. The maximum possible project funding is 30 million euros.
Photos
The Moroccan Office Chérifien des Phosphates (OCP Group) plans to produce 2026 tonnes of green ammonia for fertilizer production annually from the end of 100.000. The state-owned company plans to scale up to three million tonnes. © OCP Africa
