The long read
The Sahara solar bet — and the green hydrogen question
Algeria has some of the highest solar irradiance on Earth. Turning sunlight into a hydrogen export industry is the harder, more interesting problem.
The numbers are seductive. Parts of the Algerian Sahara receive more than 2,000 kilowatt-hours per square metre of solar irradiance each year — among the best resource on the planet. On paper, that is a foundation for both domestic electrification and export.
From electrons to molecules
Exporting electrons over long distances is costly. Exporting molecules — hydrogen, or its derivatives like ammonia — may prove more practical for reaching European industry. The SoutH2 corridor concept imagines exactly this: green hydrogen produced in North Africa, moving north through repurposed and new pipelines.
The Sahara's advantage is not sunlight. Everyone in the region has sunlight. The advantage is sunlight plus existing pipelines to Europe.
That combination — world-class irradiance next to decades of gas infrastructure and offtake relationships — is what makes Algeria's hydrogen story different from a generic desert-solar pitch.
The hard parts
- Water: electrolysis needs it, and the Sahara does not have much
- Finance: first-mover hydrogen projects carry real cost risk
- Standards: Europe's definition of 'green' will shape what qualifies
None of these are reasons to dismiss the bet. They are the reasons it is a bet at all.
Sources
Primary sources, checked against the public record.
- S01Global Solar Atlas
- S02IRENA — Green Hydrogen Cost Reduction
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