IHI: ammonia in the UAE & Malaysia, supporting start-ups

By Julian Atchison on December 21, 2022

IHI Corporation has announced three new ammonia partnerships this month.

Emirates National Oil Company Group (ENOC)

IHI and ENOC executives sign the new agreement to explore solar-to-ammonia production near Dubai. Source: IHI Corp.
Click to learn more. IHI and ENOC executives sign the new agreement to explore solar-to-ammonia production near Dubai. Source: IHI Corp.

IHI and ENOC, the UAE’s national oil and gas company, will embark on Dubai’s first “green” ammonia feasibility study. The pair will explore production of ammonia from solar energy, utilising ENOC’s existing chemical production assets. Site selection for new build solar generation and water sources will be investigated, and the pair intend to build and operate a pilot plant near Dubai after the study is completed. The export market to Japan and Asia will be a focus for the project, as will local power generation in the Middle East and bunker fuel.

Petronas

IHI and Petronas subsidiary Gentari Hydrogen will explore ammonia production from solar power in Johor, Malaysia. A feasibility study will run until early next year, with a to-be-developed plant to begin commercial operations in 2026.

Through this feasibility exploration, IHI and Gentari aim to demonstrate several ammonia application models in Malaysia and build a fuel ammonia supply chain to address the future increase of clean fuel demand. It will thereby help accelerate the adoption of fuel ammonia and contribute to improved sustainability.

Details of the MoU, from IHI’s official press release, 15 Dec 2022

Similar to the agreement with ENOC, the export market to Japan and Asia will be a focus. Potential demand within Malaysia will also be assessed. In September, Malaysia’s first ammonia coal co-firing trials were announced, with IHI and Petronas both participating.

Identifying start-ups

Following its investment in Colorado-based Starfire Energy in November (part of a successful, $24 million Series B funding round), IHI has announced it will partner with Tokyo-based Angel Navi to identify more decarbonisation venture opportunities in Japan and around the world. Identifying and supporting a diverse range of decarbonisation technologies is part of IHI’s carbon neutral 2050 vision, launched this year.