Commodities trader Trafigura will team up with Yara International to explore the development and promotion of clean ammonia to cut carbon emissions from marine shipping.
Trafigura, which charters large numbers of ships and tankers, will seek future supplies of clean ammonia from Yara. The two will also join forces in research and development into its application as a marine fuel and into creating fueling infrastructure and market opportunities.
Yara International is a world leader in the production of ammonia, which is mainly used in fertilizers. Currently, ammonia is mostly made using fossil fuels combining nitrogen and hydrogen. Its production is responsible for about 1 percent of the world’s greenhouse gasses.
The presence of hydrogen opens up possibilities for green fuel applications. Electrolysers powered by wind or solar, for example, can produce hydrogen molecules in a carbon-free process. These molecules burn clean as fuel, with only water as a byproduct. The process has yet to become competitive on cost with traditional fuels.
“There is a growing consensus that hydrogen-based fuels will ultimately be the shipping fuels of the future, but clear and comprehensive regulation is essential,” said Jose Maria Larocca, Executive Director and Co-Head of Oil Trading for Trafigura.
Yara earlier this year decided to explore possibilities via feasibility study for green ammonia bunkering for shipping with Maersk and others in Singapore.
Trafigura said it has has co-sponsored research from MAN Energy Solutions on ammonia-fuelled engines for maritime vessels. It has also suggested a global carbon levy for shipping fuels to be introduced by the International Maritime Organization, with the proceeds to fund subsidies for clean fuels.
Long-range shipping and aviation handle large chunks of global trade. Yet non-carbon fueling options in these sectors are limited due to the demands of the transportation tasks they perform.
Most experts admit that electrification, such as that taking place in auto transport fleets, is either not possible or prohibitively expensive in shipping or aviation. All the same, reducing the carbon footprint of the backbone of global trade will be key in achieving environmental goals. A new research center that opened in Denmark last year seeks to achieve carbon neutrality in maritime shippin.
There is some debate over the use of ammonia, which is hydrogen based, or hydrogen itself as the preferred option in marine fuel.
Ammonia is cheaper to store in liquid form and takes up less space, and has easier temperature requirements in liquid form. Ammonia, however, takes a bit extra cost for conversion from green hydrogen, and requires managing of its toxic elements.
The key for these new fuel ventures will be the ability to deliver performance, reliability and safety for fleets constantly engaged with the elements. And, of course, to do it in a cost competitive manner – otherwise, this would all have already been done long ago.
