Sumitomo will supply clean ammonia fuel for Hoegh Autoliners’ future fleet of ammonia-fueled PCTC vessels at the ports of Jacksonville and Singapore from 2027. Also on the Atlantic US coast, Sumitomo is part of a consortium conducting a feasibility study on ship-to-ship ammonia bunkering at the Port of Savannah.
H2SITE successfully used its membrane-based ammonia cracking technology coupled with a PEM fuel cell to power auxiliary services onboard the BERTHA B as it sailed along the Gulf of Biscay. In the UK, AFC Energy will continue validation of a 140 kg-per-day demonstration plant, featuring its modular ammonia cracker technology.
ACWA Power will develop a 150,000 tonnes-per-year renewable ammonia project in Indonesia, powered by 600 MW of wind and solar energy. The Saudi-based company also commenced construction on the first phase of its 500,000 tonnes-per-year renewable ammonia project in Uzbekistan, and has progressed development of a renewable mega-project near the Suez Canal.
For our final episode of Maritime Ammonia Insights, we asked our resident experts Sofia and Conor Fürstenberg Stott to provide their insights on the pathway forward for marine ammonia fuel. Discussion topics included challenges for overlaying alternative fuels onto the existing bunker industry, the importance of seafarers to the transition, and why we need to move beyond talking about competition between alternative fuel candidates.
Amogy & Azane Fuel Solutions will explore the use of Amogy’s ammonia-to-power system on board Azane’s ammonia bunker vessel concept. In Norway, Amogy has announced two new initiatives: one with Green Ships and Bourbon Horizons to deploy its propulsion system on a series of new Platform Service Vessels, and another to cooperate on supply chain development with ammonia fuel producer Hy2gen. Amogy, Mitsubishi and SK Innovations have also announced a new partnership to explore the large-scale deployment of Amogy’s ammonia cracking technology in Japan & Korea.
A series of flagship hydrogen initiatives were launched at COP28 last month. The initiatives are headlined by a 37-country joint declaration on mutual recognition of certification schemes, a response to sustained calls for increased global regulatory consistency. Additionally, the new ISO methodology for calculating hydrogen emissions was unveiled, paving the way for harmonisation.
IHI & Vopak will explore the development and operation of large-scale ammonia terminals in Japan, focused on the cost-effective distribution of ammonia imports. In the Netherlands, Proton Ventures reports that work on the conversion of Vesta Terminal’s existing site into an ammonia import hub is on schedule for FID to be made by 2024. And in other Proton Ventures news, the organisation has been awarded a FEED contract with Geldof to develop an ammonia terminal in Western Africa.
Yara and Northern Lights have entered into a binding agreement for a carbon, capture & sequestration chain to decarbonise ammonia production at Yara’s Sluiskil plant in the Netherlands. From 2025, 800,000 tonnes of captured CO2 will be transported and sequestered at Northern Lights’ site off the coast of Norway each year.
Following a successful engine retrofit, FFI’s dual fuel vessel debuted at COP28 this month. Unable to run on or carry ammonia fuel due to restrictions from local authorities, FFI Chairman Andrew Forrest called for the world’s ports to catch-up to technological progress and update their regulations. FFI will also be a key part of the Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Hub (one of seven hubs awarded funding by the US DoE), and has added to its vertical integration capabilities with the opening of a new technical innovation centre in the UK.
Maersk Tankers has ordered up to ten very large ammonia carriers (VLACs) from Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries (HHI). The Korean-built vessels will have a capacity of 93,000 m3, with Maersk to make a decision to install ammonia-capable engines based on “regulatory and customer” support.