LETTER: End the chemical fantasy of green hydrogen
The $8.5bn could buy eight small modular reactors, and our energy problems would be over
Your edition of November 29 contained a number of articles that might have prompted the late Nigerian author Chinua Achebe to write a sequel to his well-known novel Things Fall Apart.
Criminality is rampant at Eskom and load-shedding is at a record high. Cement production is at a record low. High interest rates are crippling the housing market and everyone is strapped for cash this Christmas. President Cyril Ramaphosa is hoping to get $8.5bn from donors so we can transition to a green tomorrow.
It seems the half that doesn’t get stolen will be wasted on the flavour of the month — green hydrogen, a chemical fantasy that even sophisticated economies aren’t sure about. The money could buy eight small modular reactors, and our energy problems would be over.
However, in a country whose products are mainly low-grade politicians and a few rugby players, this seems unlikely.
Bernard Benson
Parklands
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