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ExxonMobil’s Slagen terminal to become a low-emissions hub
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ExxonMobil, Grieg Edge, North Ammonia, and GreenH will explore options to transform Exxon’s existing Slagen terminal into a production & distribution hub for renewable ammonia and hydrogen maritime fuels. The group has identified the potential to produce 200,000 tonnes of electrolytic hydrogen production per year at the site, as well as distributing 100,000 tonnes per year of renewable ammonia. Exxon’s wider plans for low-carbon ammonia also include two large-scale production hubs (one each in the US and the UK).

Mainspring: ammonia-fed, “linear” power generators
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US-based Mainspring Energy has announced successful testing of pure ammonia fuel in its Linear Generator technology. Running on pure (anhydrous) ammonia, the overall system efficiency was 1% higher than conventional gas fuels, and Mainspring indicates that “off-the-shelf” technology available for current gas turbine models can yield NOx emissions that “meet any permitting standard”. Mainspring aims for its product to displace diesel-powered backup generators in a variety of applications.

Reflections on the last meeting of the Marine Environment Protection Committee: the time is ripe for maritime ammonia
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To develop sufficient ammonia supply to meet future maritime fuel demands, we face a herculean task. The recent meeting of the IMO’s Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC 78) gives us an insight into the key next steps to address financial & regulatory challenges. For the first time, MEPC 78 introduced the idea of a “Zero by 2050” goal for global shipping: a steep change in ambition. The use of funds from mechanisms like carbon pricing to ensure a fair, just and equitable transition, the necessity of high-impact investment to drive the fuel transition, and the adoption of new LCA guidelines in the next twelve months were also discussed. The drive & ambition shown at MEPC 78 indicates that the time is ripe for maritime ammonia to position itself as the fuel of choice for the global shipping industry.

Ammonia-powered vessels & maritime engines: development updates
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This week we explore four announcements in the maritime ammonia space:

  • Færder Tankers Norway will receive $20 million in Enova funding to develop two ammonia-powered vessel designs: a tanker and a car carrier.
  • Mitsubishi Shipbuilding has completed a conceptual design for an LPG-ammonia dual-fuel VLGC, with Approval in Principle granted by ClassNK.
  • Delivery dates have been set for the first eight of Höegh Autoliners’ Aurora-class, ammonia-powered car carriers, with China Merchants Heavy Industry to deliver vessels from late 2024.
  • WinGD and Hyundai Heavy Industries will collaborate to deliver the first WinGD two-stroke engine capable of running on ammonia by 2025.

Dual-fuel ammonia for power generation in South Korea
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Doosan, KEPCO and Samsung will join forces to jointly develop a “dual-fuel green ammonia” power generation model that can be rolled out to 1 GW power plants in South Korea. In the trio, Doosan is charged with the development of ammonia dual-fuel boilers, indicating that coal co-firing is the target of the model rollout. As part of a different agreement, Doosan is also involved in ammonia-hydrogen gas turbine development with POSCO and KEPCO.

Renewable ammonia exports from Angola by 2024
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Angola’s state-owned energy company Sonangol has signed an agreement with two German engineering firms to build a 280,000 tonne per year renewable ammonia production plant on the country’s northern coast. Exports to the EU are expected to begin in 2024, with a supply of hydroelectricity already secured.

AMON Maritime: Ammonia-fueled ships and networks
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In our most recent episode of Maritime Ammonia Insights we introduced the Amon Maritime consortium. Amon is unique, as it builds from the ground up and shares risk to remove the chicken-and-egg dilemma faced by new maritime ammonia players. Acknowledging that external funding has been essential to reach the point where they are at today, Amon Maritime has progressed as a shipping company and ammonia bunkering network at remarkable speed. With their novel approach and impressive progress to date, there are many takeaways for the wider maritime stakeholder environment to consider. Amon’s CEO André Risholm and CCO Karl Arthur Bræin joined Conor Fürstenberg Stott to discuss the opportunities ahead.

OCI to expand ammonia import capabilities at Rotterdam
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OCI will expand its ammonia import terminal at the Port of Rotterdam, increasing throughput capacity from 400,000 tonnes per year to 1.2 million tonnes per year by 2023. A second phase of expansion is planned, and will involve construction of a new, “world-scale” ammonia storage tank to bring throughput capacities above 3 million tonnes per year.

Decarbonizing fossil-based ammonia production in North America
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Our latest Ammonia Project Features webinar focused on various pathways for decarbonizing fossil-based ammonia production in North America. Blake Adair from Nutrien took us on a tour of some of his organisation’s existing low-carbon ammonia production facilities. He also explained how the technology solutions already exist to drive down emissions from hydrogen production, and improve rates of carbon capture. Dr. Amgad Elgowainy from Argonne National Laboratories then presented his team’s analysis of carbon dioxide mitigation costs for ammonia production, noting that current federal incentives for CCS projects already have a material impact on project costs. With incentives in place and mature technology available, we will soon see more low-carbon ammonia production projects emerge in North America.