The European Commission has approved a €3 billion German scheme to support the construction of the “Hydrogen Core Network”. The 9,700 km network will act as the foundation of a long-distance, pipeline transport network for hydrogen within Germany, connecting to several EU states and the continent-wide European Hydrogen Backbone.
Fluxys and Advario have issued a call for market interest in ammonia import capacity at their new, open-access terminal at the Port of Antwerp-Bruges. Fluxys is also engaged in the HyBex project, a pilot commodity trading hub that will help establish a hydrogen market in Belgium. Also in Europe, the Port of Rotterdam and the Port of Shannon Foynes will collaborate to develop a green fuels corridor.
Fifty percent of phase one production will be supplied to Yara Clean Ammonia from Greenko’s planned production facility in Kakinada, southern India. The offtake agreement covers “long-term supply” of ammonia, which will be compliant to EU import requirements.
Eastern Pacific Shipping’s on-order very large ammonia carriers (VLACs) will be registered in Singapore, thanks to a new partnership with the Maritime and Port Authority. Trafigura has announced the first of its ammonia-fueled, medium gas carriers will be delivered from South Korea in 2027. In Japan, K LINE and MAN are leading a 5-party collaboration to develop ammonia fueled-engines and deploy them in 200,000 dwt bulk carriers. We also explore ammonia-fueled Aframaxes in Malaysia, a concept study for a large-volume, coastal ammonia carrier in Japan, and a new salmon fishing vessel design in Norway.
Multiple ammonia import bases are under development in Asia. In Singapore, Vopak and Air Liquide will explore new infrastructure on Jurong Island. In South Korea, Ulsan Port Authority and NGO Pacific Environment will cooperate to accelerate the transition of Ulsan into an “eco-friendly” port. And in Japan, IHI will lead two study consortia exploring new supply and distribution hubs in Hokkaido and Fukushima.
The American Bureau of Shipping, Fleet Management Limited, Sumitomo Corporation, TOTE Services and CALAMCO will explore the feasibility of ship-to-ship bunkering at the Ports of Oakland and Benicia, leveraging CALAMCO’s existing ammonia import and storage terminal at the Port of Stockton.
Yara and Azane have received approval from Norway’s Directorate for Civil Protection to construct their first ammonia bunker facility at Fjord Base, with the bulk of bunker operations to provide offshore supply vessels with ammonia fuel. In the Netherlands, the Dutch EPA has granted a permit to OCI Global to construct a 60,000 ton ammonia storage tank in Rotterdam, based on requirements that will feature in the updated version of PGS-12.
The Port Bonython and Pilbara Hubs are part of a wider strategy by the Australian government to set up multiple hubs around the country to promote renewable hydrogen & ammonia production in Australia. Based on a common-user infrastructure approach and equal federal-state funding, other locations set to benefit from this initiative include Kwinana, Gladstone, Townsville, Bell Bay and the Hunter.
Located in Stade, Germany, the €1 billion Hanseatic Energy Hub will serve as an import terminal for LNG and subsequently ammonia. Project partners announced this month that they have reached FID, with operations to begin in 2027. HEH joins a long list of ammonia import terminals planned along Germany’s coastline.
A new report from the World Bank and partners proposes a series of levers to help bridge the finance gap for clean hydrogen production projects. Although clean hydrogen projects emerging markets and developing countries account for 40% of the global pipeline and could attract investment of up to $100 billion per year, a significant finance gap exists to push these projects to “FEED-plus”.