Pupuk Indonesia: renewable ammonia production for marine fuel and power generation

Click to learn more. Pupuk Indonesia will build a renewable ammonia plant at its existing fertiliser production facility in Aceh. Source: Pupuk Iskandar Muda.

Partnering with ITOCHU Corporation and Toyo Engineering, Pupuk Indonesia plans to develop a hybrid renewable ammonia project at its existing fertiliser plant in Aceh. The three parties signed a joint development agreement at the 2nd Asia Zero Emission Community (AZEC) ministerial meeting in Jakarta this August.

The agreement, officially termed the Green Ammonia Initiative from Aceh (GAIA), will focus on the production of renewable ammonia at a Pupuk-owned fertiliser plant in Aceh, western Indonesia. The parties will begin by installing an electrolyser at the plant to produce renewable hydrogen feedstock. ITOCHU will utilise the ammonia as marine fuel, with the plant located adjacent to the Straits of Malacca, a key global shipping route.

The FEED was scheduled to commence in August 2024, with the parties planning to form a joint venture company. FID is expected in the first half of 2025, and commercial operations in 2027. The project is part of the Global South Future-Oriented Co-Creation Business Expense Subsidy by Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry (METI), which is supporting 13 futuristic projects in the ASEAN region.

Further, Pupuk Kujang, Pupuk Indonesia’s portfolio company, also signed an MoU with PLN Indonesia Power and IHI Corporation focusing on ammonia co-firing demonstrations at PLN’s Labuan coal power plant in Banten, west Java. As part of this project, IHI will provide an electrolyser and a special burner while Pupuk Kujang will supply the renewable ammonia.

In Project GAIA, Pupuk Indonesia will produce green ammonia using an ammonia plant designed and constructed by TOYO in the early 2000s. This green ammonia will then be supplied to ITOCHU as a marine fuel feedstock, creating a comprehensive value chain, and becoming the first of its kind in both Indonesia and the world.

With over 50 years of experience in the production, storage, and distribution of ammonia, Pupuk Indonesia is the right strategic partner to further develop green ammonia production in Indonesia. This cooperation represents one of Pupuk Indonesia’s business diversification efforts, not only supporting food security but also promoting industrial downstreaming and adding value to the national economy, as well as supporting the government’s target of achieving Net Zero Emissions by 2060. 

Rahmad Pribadi, Pupuk Indonesia President Director, in his organisation’s official press release, 21 August 2024