MPA leads ammonia announcements at Singapore Maritime Week

At this year’s event, Maritime & Port Authority of Singapore has announced new initiatives and a host of updates on ongoing maritime ammonia projects.

Green & digital shipping corridors

MPA and the Port of Rotterdam will continue their push towards a green & digital shipping corridor between Singapore and Rotterdam. New partners in this initiative include major shipping liner Hapag-Lloyd and A*STAR, Singapore’s government Agency for Science, Technology and Research. An ammonia working group will be established to develop an LCA framework to determine the emissions intensity of ammonia bunker fuel – one which is likely to closely resemble ongoing efforts at the IMO. The green corridor initiative will also include bunker pilots for ammonia and other alternative fuels.

As part of an Australia-Singapore corridor, the Australia-Singapore Initiative on Low Emissions Technologies (ASLET) will be jointly delivered by MPA and CSIRO. The new initiative will encourage the deployment and uptake of low-emissions fuels and technologies.

We need to focus on transitioning to low-emissions fuels such as ammonia and hydrogen by developing accessible technology and infrastructure at ports that supports a range of vessels. Collaborating with MPA and also industry partners from both countries, we aim to accelerate the decarbonisation of the supply chain and help revolutionise the industry.

CSIRO Chief Executive Doug Hilton in MPA’s official press release, 17 Apr 2024

MPA is also considering green & digital shipping corridors with six Japanese ports.

RFI issued for power generation, bunker trial at Jurong Island

Launched in December 2022, MPA and Singapore’s Energy Market Authority are overseeing low-emissions power generation and bunkering demonstration projects on Jurong Island. At Singapore Maritime Week, MPA took the step of issuing an RFI for “freight and insurance costs to transport ammonia into Singapore” from eight global locations. These locations reflect the (undisclosed) shortlist of consortiums who are being considered to build, own and operate these demonstration projects. The winning consortium will be chosen by the start of next year, following pre-FEED work for all shortlisted projects.

Potential export locations include the Arabian Sea coastline of India, China’s Bohai Sea, northeast Newfoundland, Chile, the Gulf of Oman, Queensland, the Saudi Arabian Red Sea, and the US Gulf Coast. Starting with 100,000 tons per year in 2026, 300,000 tons per year will be shipped for five years from 2027. As Ammonia Energy readers are well aware, a host of low-emissions ammonia production projects are under development in these locations.

New training facilities

MPA and a group of industry partners will establish the Maritime Energy Training Facility (METF). METF will be a network of decentralised training facilities around Singapore, including a new “dual-fuel marine engine simulator” for training on the safe handling, bunkering and management of alternative fuels, including methanol and ammonia. Amogy is one of the industry partners who will participate in the project.

IMO Secretary-General visits the Fortescue Green Pioneer

Among the attendees to Singapore Maritime Week was IMO Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez. On a visit aboard the Fortescue Green Pioneer in Keppel Bay, Dominguez took part in an ammonia safety drill to don emergency PPE, and explained that – though uncertainties remain – a broad coalition of maritime stakeholders was working to address safety concerns about ammonia fuel. Dominguez noted that the most recent alternative marine fuel (LNG) also went through the same discussions around safety and suitability:

We have the same concerns with LNG in the past, and we went through it, we approached it with the necessary care and in the actions that we needed to take. And now we’re not talking about those safety aspects of LNG.

IMO Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez quoted in “Ammonia as an alternative fuel gathers pace, safety concerns remain”, Marcus Hand, Seatrade, 23 Apr 2024

Establishing a forward-thinking, practical conversation around ammonia fuel has long been a priority of the Singapore-based Global Centre for Maritime Decarbonisation. Although not in the headlines at Singapore Maritime Week, GCMD’s approach is reflected in the tone of discussion and the announcements made. After releasing the results of its technical study into ammonia bunker pilots in Singapore harbor last year, GCMD is now working towards an ammonia bunker pilot at one of three sites.

We use the term ‘risk awareness’ instead of ‘risk aversion’, in order to shift the discussion from ‘this fuel is dangerous; therefore, I am not going to touch it’ to ‘how do I handle this fuel safely?’

Lau Wei Jie, Director of Partnerships at the Global Centre for Maritime Decarbonisation quoted in “Decarbonisation – Collaborate We Must”, Sea Voices, 24 Jan 2024