Azane Fuel Solutions, a joint venture created by technology company ECONNECT Energy and zero-emission ship project specialist Amon Maritime, has been awarded NOK 89 million (EUR 8.6 million) from the Norwegian Green Platform Initiative to deliver green ammonia bunkering solutions.
Two Norway-based companies have launched the joint venture in July 2021 to fill an existing gap in the ammonia fuel value chain.
The project partners will develop and demonstrate an ammonia fuel bunkering network for ships, enabling cost-efficient and safe distribution, storage, transfer and utilization of ammonia as a carbon-free fuel.
“The Norwegian government established the “Green platform Initiative” program to help lift exactly this type of innovative project. Ammonia is important for the green transition, especially for the shipping industry. We will decrease emissions, not development,” said Sveinung Rotevatn , Norwegian Minister of Climate and the Environment.
The new solutions will be capable of receiving fuel from ships, trucks and barges, in a refrigerated or pressurised state and be optimised for ammonia-fuelled ships, according to the company.
What is more, these solutions include both shore-based and floating systems.
To realize the project, Azane Fuel Solutions has brought partners throughout the value chain, including industrial giant Yara, which will produce green ammonia.
“This grant is an important milestone for the project,” said Magnus Krogh Ankarstrand , President Yara Clean Ammonia.
“Developing bunkering solutions is a key piece of the puzzle to make ammonia available as a zero-emission fuel.”
In February 2021, Yara established new global unit, Yara Clean Ammonia, “to capture growth opportunities within carbon-free food solutions, shipping fuel and other clean ammonia applications.”
Azane Fuel Solutions plans to offer its products and services globally and sees the Northern European market as a likely early adopter of ammonia fuel for the maritime industry.
Ammonia is gaining in popularity and emerging as the likely front-runner in the fourth propulsion revolution in the maritime industry.