The German government has signed two memoranda of understanding with Egypt to strengthen partnerships on liquefied natural gas (LGN) and green hydrogen. The cooperation, which was first announced in July, will see Germany support Egypt in building a sustainable green hydrogen sector and increasing LNG trade. The announcement comes shortly before the the start of the COP27 global climate change conference in Egypt on Sunday (6 November). “We are sending a clear signal ahead of the world climate conference: we support Egypt in putting its own energy supply on new footing and accelerating the switch from fossil to climate-friendly energies,” said economy minister Robert Habeck. He added that in the short term, LNG trade with Egypt can help Germany diversfty its energy imports and become less dependent on Russian gas. 

Germany is accelerating its transition to renewable energy in response to the ongoing energy crisis, whilst also substituting Russian energy imports with supplies from other countries. German chancellor Scholz has been visiting countries across Africa in recent months in an effort to source fossil fuels – particularly gas – following reductions in Russian gas deliveries earlier this year and a complete halt in September. The German government has said it will continue to support new gas projects abroad despite criticism from activists who say that any new fossil fuel exploration is likely incompatible with the Paris Climate Agreement. One government official said support would be in line with the country’s overall climate commitments, and suggested that funds could go to transport infrastructure, but did not rule out support for new extraction projects.