‘World’s first’ carbon-free ammonia-powered vessel completes its maiden voyage

U.S.-based provider of ammonia-to-power solutions Amogy has passed a major milestone with the successful maiden voyage of the ‘world’s first’ carbon-free, ammonia powered vessel, signalling a ‘step forward’ for the maritime industry as it sails toward its net-zero targets.

Christened the NH3 Kraken, the tugboat sailed on a tributary of the Hudson River upstream from New York City on September 23, showcasing the potential of Amogy’s ammonia cracking technology, which converts liquid ammonia (NH3) into its base elements of hydrogen and nitrogen, and then funnels the hydrogen into a fuel cell.

According to Amogy, this process generates high-performance power with zero carbon emissions, making it a ‘sustainable and clean energy-based’ solution tailored for hard-to-abate sectors like maritime shipping as well as stationary power generation applications.

As disclosed, NH3 Kraken—which was originally built in 1957 and had supported ice-breaking operations in recent years until it was sold to Amogy—was retrofitted with the company’s ammonia-to electrical power system. During the demonstration, the tugboat was fueled with green ammonia, produced entirely with renewable energy.

The achievement is said to be ‘the largest and most significant application of Amogy’s technology to date’, marking a ‘big step’ toward meeting the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) goals of net-zero emissions by 2050.

“Governments across the globe and industry organizations like the IMO have set aggressive goals to reduce global carbon emissions. These goals seem daunting, but they’re necessary – and our successful demonstration of the world’s first carbon-free, ammonia-powered vessel proves that they’re achievable,” Seonghoon Woo, CEO and co-founder of Amogy, remarked.

“By demonstrating our technology on the water for the first time, we’ve gained invaluable knowledge that will help us move quickly to commercialization and real-world applications. The opportunity to decarbonize the maritime industry is within reach, and for Amogy, it’s just the beginning.”

Following NH3 Kraken’s maiden voyage, Amogy is set out to apply the knowledge gained from the demonstration to real-world applications of its technology.

As informed, this will include both retrofit projects and newbuilds, with the company reportedly working on contracts signed and in progress with a number of international organizations, such as South Korean shipbuilder Hanwha Ocean and Norway’s Terox, a company that specializes in electrifying heavy construction and tunneling machines.

Considering the fact that the global shipping industry is responsible for around 3% of global emissions, according to the Belgium-based NGO Transport & Environment, NH3 Kraken’s completed maiden voyage is described as an endeavor that ‘validated’ the broad potential ammonia holds for bringing significant, positive changes for the shipping industry, as well as for other power generation sources in the future.

“Ammonia is the world’s second most produced chemical, with around 20 million tons moving around the globe through 200 ports each year,” Woo emphasized.

“With that track record, shifting the industry mindset to use it as a fuel is completely achievable, and can happen at an accelerated pace.”

Following the recent accomplishment with NH3 Kraken, Amogy is set out to release a case study providing additional technical details in the coming months, according to a statement from the company.

In other news, earlier this September, Amogy partnered up with HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering (HD KSOE), POSCO Holdings, Seoul National University (SNU) and the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) to jointly explore the technological feasibility of an offshore ammonia-cracking solution.

The project was said to aims for the delivery of low-cost, accessible clean hydrogen fuel.