Study on ammonia supply base in Fukushima reaches new stage

A survey for the establishment of an ammonia supply base in the Soma area, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan, has been selected for the fiscal 2024 “Subsidy for Measures to Promote the Introduction of Non-fossil Energy (Hydrogen Supply Infrastructure Development Project)” offered by the Consortium for Resilient Omni-energy Supply System (CROS).

The survey was adopted on May 30, 2024, and aims to establish a base for receipt, storage and supply of ammonia in the Soma area of Fukushima Prefecture and realize a business that enables the supply of ammonia to the broader region of north Kanto, mainly Soma and vicinity, Tohoku and Hokkaido regions.

The five Japanese companies involved in the study – Japan Petroleum Exploration, Mitsubishi Gas Chemical, IHI Corporation, Mitsui & Co. and Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL), said that from now on, they will conduct the “survey and study specifications of the ammonia base needed to build the base, as well as survey of vessels and study of business models.”

The companies also noted that the public solicitation is for CROS to partially subsidize the cost of the feasibility studies for constructing the supply infrastructure for hydrogen and other resources and to provide accompanying support for the feasibility studies, adding: “The purpose of the Public Solicitation is to create large-scale needs for the use of hydrogen, etc., and to construct a supply chain that enables economical, efficient, and autonomous development.”

To remind, the joint study for the establishment of the ammonia supply base in the Soma area began in January 2024.