The agreement was signed by Fatma Thabet Chiboub, Minister of Industry, Mines and Energy in Tunisia, and Marco Arcelli, CEO of ACWA Power.
ACWA Power would develop, operate and maintain 12 GW of renewable energy electricity generation units, including storage systems and transmission lines, along with water desalination plants, electrolysers and infrastructures to connect to the main pipeline. The first phase would involve installing 4 GW of renewable energy units, 2 GW of electrolyser capacity, as well as battery storage facilities, to produce 200,000 tonnes per year of green hydrogen. The green hydrogen production is aimed to be exported through the South2 Corridor, a hydrogen pipeline initiative led by European TSOs and identified as Project of Common Interest by the EU, connecting Tunisia to Italy, Austria and Germany.
Commenting on the announcement, Ouael Chouchene, Secretary of State for Energy Transition, said: “This project aligns perfectly with the Tunisian Government's national green hydrogen strategy released in October 2023, which targets an annual production of 8.3 million t of green hydrogen and byproducts by 2050. We are confident that this agreement with ACWA Power will leverage Tunisia's strengths, including its strategic geographic location, existing infrastructure, and skilled workforce, to create a more sustainable future for the country."
The project intends to play an integral role in supporting Tunisia’s National Strategy for the Development of Green Hydrogen and its Derivatives, which was launched in October 2023. The strategy includes an action plan for exporting more than 6 million t of green hydrogen to Europe by 2050.