Uniper to receive ammonia from First Ammonia’s flagship project in Texas

German energy company Uniper and New York-headquartered ammonia plants developer First Ammonia have agreed to cooperate on a green ammonia project in the port of Victoria, Texas.

The parties revealed their plans to cooperate on October 30 at the US-German Hydrogen Conference in Berlin.

As part of the agreement, green ammonia produced from renewable electricity at First Ammonia’s flagship facility in the port of Victoria, Texas, will be delivered to Uniper.

According to First Ammonia, this is the first commercial-scale ammonia facility to use solid-oxide electrolyzers, which are 30% more energy efficient than conventional electrolyzers.

Each 100 MW module will initially produce up to 100,000 million tons per annum (mtpa) of green ammonia. This is the equivalent to 180,000-240,000 MT of CO2 avoided per annum when compared to grey ammonia.

The production at the facility is expected to begin in 2026, with rapid scale-up after that enabled by modular design, servicing Uniper’s industrial and global customers.

First Ammonia’s CEO, Joel Moser, said: “We are excited to partner with Uniper to deliver green ammonia to the global market from our 100% carbon-free, innovative flagship project in Texas. This groundbreaking project brings together Texan renewable electricity with the flexibility of cutting-edge electrolyzers from our technology partner Topsoe in Denmark, the local knowledge and support of the Victoria Economic Development Corporation, and now the global perspective of Uniper as a front runner in the transition towards greener gases. We look forward to a long and successful partnership with Uniper.”

Uniper’s Chief Commercial Officer, Carsten Poppinga, noted: “Our focus on greener gases will allow Uniper’s customers to switch from carbon-intensive ammonia to green and blue ammonia and thus avoiding a significant amount of greenhouse gas emissions. The planned cooperation with First Ammonia and their technology partner Topsoe is a further and novel step into securing a diversified, flexible, and optimal supply of renewable molecules for North America and Europe.”

Popping added that Uniper’s near-term goal is to become a supplier of choice for the industries using ammonia as a feedstock. The company is actively pursuing projects to develop ammonia landing terminals and related infrastructure in European ports including at its terminal in Wilhelmshaven.