In Japan, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, in cooperation with the Ministry of the Environment will invest $212 million in the domestic manufacture of ammonia engines, fuel tanks and components. In Korea, the national Export-Import Bank has committed to supporting ammonia-fueled newbuilds.
To explore the interim fuel guidelines and discuss their implications, we were joined by the IMO and Lloyd’s Register. Properly applied, the new fuel guidelines will ensure that ammonia systems achieve safety standards comparable to those of LNG or other alternative fuel systems, with special provisions made to ensure that ammonia’s hazards are effectively managed well within acceptable risk thresholds.
Madoqua and Mitsui O.S.K. Lines will lead development of the corridor. Industry partners in the consortium include financiers, terminal operators, Port authorities, alternative fuel producers and offtakers. The transportation of liquified CO2 along the corridor will help establish a supply chain for sequestration of carbon emissions in Norway at Horisont Energi’s Gismarvik CO2 hub.
North Ammonia and Fjord Base Holding will develop a renewable ammonia production facility at the Fjord Base maritime logistics hub in Florø, Norway. Yara and Azane have already received safety approvals to construct their first ammonia bunker facility at Fjord Base, consisting of one of Azane’s floating ammonia bunker barges.
Set to produce 900,000 tons per year of renewable ammonia powered by 3.7 GW of combined wind and solar energy, CIP’s Helax project in Mexico is set to come online in 2028. In Newfoundland and Labrador, CIP has acquired a 90% stake in a large-scale, onshore wind-powered renewable hydrogen project.
The construction of EXMAR’s first 46,000 m3, ammonia-powered midsized gas carrier vessel began in December last year, with the four ordered vessels on track for delivery in 2026, powered by dual-fuel WinGD engines.
COSCO Shipping reports that successful truck-to-ship ammonia bunkering of its retrofitted tugboat Yuantuo 1 took place in Dalian last December, performed by one of China’s largest bunker providers.
A new round of Norwegian government funding has awarded a total of $68 million to a series of ammonia-fueled vessel projects, including a replacement freighter to service a key cargo and postal route to Svalbard, platform supply vessels, and the bunkering/distribution vessel MS Green Ammonia.
WinGD has received orders for its 52-bore X-DF-A ammonia-fuelled engines for seven LPG/ammonia dual-fuel carriers. Germany’s Hapag-Lloyd has ordered 24 modern vessels from Chinese shipyards, among them 12 ammonia-ready newbuilds.
The marine action plan urges the federal government to prioritize the implementation of electrolytic ammonia and methanol fuel in ocean-going vessels by 2050. A detailed action roadmap is presented, including infrastructure deployment, retrofits and upgrades to existing vessels.