Site items in: Content by Author Julian Atchison

Pilbara renewable ammonia project reaches key milestones
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ENGIE has successfully reached a final investment decision on Project Yuri. The collaboration with Yara will see renewable hydrogen feedstock produced next door to Yara’s existing ammonia & fertiliser production facility in Karratha, Western Australia, with construction to commence this year, and production of renewable hydrogen to begin in 2024.

In further developments, Yuri has new stakeholders, with Mitsui & Co. securing a 28% interest stake in Yuri, and Technip Energy being selected to lead EPCC works. And in certification news, the Smart Energy Council also announced it has granted pre-certification for renewable hydrogen & ammonia production from Project Yuri, under the Zero Carbon Certification Scheme.

First Ammonia announces deal for 5GW of Topsoe electrolysers
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US-based First Ammonia has announced a new reservation deal with Topsoe for delivery of solid-oxide electrolysers. Initially, First Ammonia will purchase 500 MW of SOECs from Topsoe’s new manufacturing plant in Herning, Denmark, with the option to expand to 5 GW over the lifetime of the agreement. That initial 500 MW will be deployed over two First Ammonia production projects, both targeting commercial operations in 2025: one in northern Germany, and one in southwest USA.

New ammonia import & export terminals
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At Vlissingen in the Netherlands, Uniper & Vesta Terminals will explore the feasibility of developing a new ammonia import hub in northwest Europe, based on Vesta’s existing 60,000m3 ammonia storage facility. Also this week, Proton Ventures is currently developing a state-of-the-art ammonia export terminal for an oil & gas major in the UAE, which will feature the “biggest ammonia tanks ever built in the Middle East”.

KBR: ammonia-powered offshore drilling
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KBR, Odfjell, Equinor and Wärtsilä will all collaborate to study conversion of diesel generators on board semi-submersible, offshore drilling vessels to ammonia-fueled generators. On-board power for equipment and heavy machinery on these vessels is typically provided by fossil-fed generators. As fuel costs increase, operators are looking to new energy solutions including offshore wind and alternative fuels like hydrogen & ammonia.

Wärtsilä launches new multi-fuel maritime engine
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Wärtsilä has just launched its medium-speed, 4-stroke, Wärtsilä 25 engine, intended to be the first Wärtsilä engine to run on ammonia fuel. From 2023 a technology upgrade will be commercially available to allow the engine to run on alternative fuels like ammonia, with a fully-compliant NOx abatement system already available when running on fossil-based fuels. At the recent Australia conference, MAN ES reported that their two-stroke ammonia engine will be commercially available in 2024, with testing to commence next year.