Ammonia exports from regional Russia

UK-based organisations Eurasia Mining and H4Energy will develop two hydrogen & ammonia projects at either end of Russia. The Kola Green Hydrogen Project in Murmansk (far west) seeks to take advantage of cheap, abundant zero-carbon energy, combined with easy access to key shipping routes. On Sakhalin Island (far east) a new, wind-powered P2X facility is being explored.

Kola Green Hydrogen

This export project in far-west Russia takes advantage of a number of unique regional characteristics. Electricity generation in Murmansk is already zero-carbon, cheap and plentiful: only 44% of the region’s 1.8 GW-worth of hydro plants are currently utilised. There is plentiful freshwater supply, and easy access to the only year-round ice-free port above the Arctic Circle. Murmansk also lies on a key shipping route, with only two day’s sailing time to Amsterdam. Port and logistics facilities are well-developed, and an additional high-volume bulk handling terminal (100 million tonnes per year) is currently under construction. Eurasia Mining and H4Energy aren’t the only developers looking at Murmansk either, with Enel exploring plans for a significant, wind-powered green hydrogen project in the region.

Project partners Eurasia Mining and H4Energy have already secured land for hydrogen and ammonia production. Two exurban sites next to an existing rail corridor and transmission lines have been secured for ammonia production, and two port/city-adjacent sites have been earmarked for electrolysis plants. Ammonia appears destined for zero-carbon fertilisers, with a project update from December 2021 indicating a Fertiberia production plant is part of the planned infrastructure. The positioning of the two sets of production sites is indeed counter-intuitive for ammonia exports, though specific mention is made of ammonia handling at port facilities.

Sakhalin Island

Almost 6,000km away on the far eastern side of Russia, the south western tip of Sakhalin Island is the location for the second hydrogen & ammonia project. Progress is more limited here, but Eurasia Mining and H4Energy have secured sites for production plants, port access, and land corridors for new build transmission lines between onshore wind farm installations. UK-based Petrofac has been engaged to explore the feasibility of as much as 3 GW wind power on Sakhalin Island, beginning with a 100 MW installation producing 17,000 tonnes of green hydrogen per year. Export is the focus of this new project, with only 40km separating Sakhalin and Japan.