First accredited low-carbon ammonia for power generation shipped from Saudi Arabia to Japan

A first shipment of independently-certified low-carbon ammonia has arrived in Japan 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 with feedstock from Aramco, and sold by Aramco Trading Company to the Fuji Oil Company. Mitsui OSK Lines (MOL) 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.

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.

Toshiaki Tanaka, an executive vice president at MOL, commented: “Ammonia is expected to be in great demand as a next-generation, clean energy source. Japan aims to achieve a carbon-neutral society by 2050, and we are very pleased to transport independently-certified low-carbon ammonia from Saudi Arabia to Japan. We are aiming for a track record of safe, reliable services across multiple transportation modes, in accordance with our customers’ needs.”