A first shipment of independently-certified, low-carbon ammonia has arrived in Japan from Saudi Arabia for use as fuel in power generation
The shipment is the result of a successful multiparty collaboration across the low-carbon ammonia value chain. The ammonia was produced by SABIC Agri-Nutrients (SABIC AN) with feedstock from Aramco, and sold by Aramco Trading Company to the Fuji Oil Company. Mitsui O.S.K. Lines was tasked with shipping the liquid to Japan, then the low-carbon ammonia was transported to the Sodegaura Refinery for use in co-fired power generation, with technical support provided by Japan Oil Engineering Co.
The ammonia is categorised as low-carbon because CO2 from the associated manufacturing process was captured and utilised in downstream applications.
Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry has announced plans to increasingly harness ammonia as a fuel for power generation and for ship propulsion, as part of the country’s 2050 decarbonisation goals. The low-carbon ammonia that reached Japan is part of broader efforts by Aramco and SABIC AN to establish a global supply network for this lower-carbon fuel. Aramco and SABIC AN aim to supply low-carbon ammonia to other players to meet their early demand needs.
Olivier Thorel, Aramco senior vice president of Chemicals, said, “This is another milestone that highlights the possibilities for low-carbon hydrogen and ammonia made from Aramco feedstock, with the potential to play a role in a lower-carbon future. Not only is low-carbon ammonia a means to transport lower-carbon hydrogen, it is an important energy source in its own right that can help decarbonise key sectors – including power generation for both utilities and industries. By dispatching this accredited low-carbon ammonia to Japan, we are helping chart a course for the development of this vital commodity.”
In 2020, Aramco collaborated with SABIC to dispatch the world’s first shipment of low-carbon ammonia to Japan in a demonstration project. Then, in 2022, Aramco and SABIC AN received the world’s first independent accreditation for low-carbon hydrogen and ammonia products. By the end of that year, the two companies had delivered the world’s first accredited low-carbon ammonia shipment to South Korea. The latest shipment to Japan brings this lower-carbon energy solution one step closer to the mainstream.
