South Africa is going to COP26 in Glasgow with high hopes of being recognised as a country that can play its part in the global fight against climate change. What is ironic is that South Africa not only hosted COP17 in Durban ten years ago, but also presented an amazing case on the significant role we could play in the fight against climate change.
Former Anglo American CEO Cynthia Carroll made it patently clear at COP17 that South Africa was in an excellent position to seize the economic moment. But instead of moving fast into the very far-reaching supply chain that hydrogen fuel cells and electrolysers present, South Africa became bogged down in public-sector leadership swopping.
The upshot was that many other countries stole a march on us. Fortunately, we clung to valuable research and development that has enabled us to get an invaluable grasp of the wonders that the hydrogen economy can bring. While the Presidential team flaunts that in Glasgow, South Africans still dipping a toe in the hydrogen economy should step-change with much greater confidence towards reaping the benefits of what is now being dubbed the miracle molecule. As most South Africans are by now surely aware, green hydrogen and South Africa make a perfect couple.