A demonstration scale ammonia cracker plant is under construction in Germany as part of a partnership between thyssenkrupp Uhde and Uniper. The plant, expected to be commissioned by the end of 2026, will handle about 28 tonnes per day of ammonia, and serve as a test case for the planned hydrogen import terminal at the port of Wilhelmshaven, northwestern Germany.
Marubeni will offtake about 250,000 tons per year of CCS-based ammonia from ExxonMobil’s Baytown Texas facility, to be co-fired at the Kobe power plant in Japan. Marubeni joins Trammo, ADNOC, Mitsubishi, Air Liquide and SK Inc. as project partners, with a series of offtake agreements already signed.
Amogy, GS Engineering & Construction, HD Hyundai Infracore, and the city of Pohang will collaborate to deploy a 1 MW ammonia-powered distributed power generation system in 2026, scaling up to a commercial, 40 MW system by 2028-29.
Adani Energy Solutions has had a $330 million transmission project approved that will supply power to its renewable hydrogen and ammonia project in Mundra, Gujarat. The first phase of the Mundra Green Hydrogen Hub will feature 1 million tons per year hydrogen production capacity, with ammonia to be utilized for coal co-firing, marine fuel, exports, and as a substitute for current feedstock imports into India.
IHI Corporation, state-owned utility PLN Indonesia Power, and state-owned fertilizer company Pupuk have announced the successful completion of an ammonia co-firing trial at the Labuan power plant on Java’s west coast.
Here, we explore the current demonstration landscape for large-scale cracking. To produce pipeline-quality hydrogen at future energy import hubs, industrial-scale ammonia cracking is still to be derisked and demonstrated, although certain parts of the overall process have been proven at scale. What are the technology elements to be considered, and who are the first-movers deploying the technology in a variety of global locations?
In 2025, the pieces are rapidly assembling to enable and accelerate imports of ammonia energy to Japan. This year, government agency METI is due to announce two lots of key funding, including contracts for difference subsidies and development of import infrastructure. Power generation technologies will be commercialised within the next few years, and more maritime players are joining the push to deploy ammonia fuel in Japanese ships.