Australia’s Pilbara gears up to pilot ammonia bunkering by 2026

The Pilbara Ports Authority plans to begin ammonia bunkering trials at Port Hedland in Western Australia by next year.

IMAGE: Ship-to-ship ammonia transfer between Navigator Global and the Green Pioneer at the outer anchorage of Port Dampier. Yara Clean Ammonia

It has outlined a new roadmap to establish Pilbara as a “clean fuel bunkering hub” by 2030.

The port authority aims to build on the ammonia ship-to-ship transfer pilot conducted last year at the Port of Dampier to expedite ammonia bunkering trial at Port Hedland.

Its roadmap focuses on sourcing locally produced green and blue ammonia for bunkering, with key supply expected from upcoming production projects.

Norwegian firms Yara Clean Ammonia and NH3 Clean Energy have planned two separate projects to start green and blue ammonia production at Dampier by 2026 and 2029, respectively. Meanwhile, the BP-led Australian Renewable Energy Hub (AREH) project at Port Hedland is targeting an output of 9 million mt/year of green ammonia by the mid-2030s, according to its website.

The Pilbara Ports Authority plans to leverage these and other regional projects to support ammonia bunkering at Port Hedland.

“The Pilbara’s role as a global bulk export hub, supplying half the world’s iron ore, makes it central to efforts to decarbonise the shipping fleet servicing the Pilbara to North Asia shipping route,” the port authority said.

The roadmap also covers the development of bunkering infrastructure, safety guidelines and standards, cost analysis and partnerships with the government and the private sector to launch bunkering trials by 2026.

By Konica Bhatt

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