The Week in Alternative Fuels
Here are some of the key developments in alternative bunker fuels from the past week.
PHOTO: Model of the ammonia-powered tugboat that will be deployed in Yokohama, Japan. NYK Line
The Chilean government's state corporation Corfo has awarded three contracts to build green hydrogen production plants. The country is endowed with great access to renewable energy sources and is projected to become a major hydrogen exporter in the coming decades.
Shell announced it plans to build a hydrogen plant in Brazil’s Porto do Açu near Rio de Janeiro. The plant will initially have a 10 MW-capacity electrolyser to produce hydrogen with renewable energy sourced from Brazil’s national grid.
Australian hydrogen firm Provaris Energy has partnered with Northern Marine to boost its hydrogen carrier programme.
At a webinar organised by the Ammonia Energy Association this week, representatives from classification society DNV and the Global Centre for Maritime Decarbonisation (GCMD) said they expect demand for ammonia bunkering in Singapore to surge by 2035.
NYK Line plans to deploy an ammonia-fuelled tugboat in Japan's Yokohama by 2024.
A group of shipping firms, engine manufacturers and financial institutions have set out to develop a modern Silk Road to boost production of green marine fuels by signalling future demand from major container lines.
Repsol and Aramco have agreed to build a synthetic green fuels plant in Spain’s Bilbao with an initial capacity to produce 2,100 mt/year.
Oil supermajor BP has signed a deal to supply B30 bio-VLSFO blends to one of Rio Tinto's vessels as part of one year trial run.
Shipping association BIMCO announced it has approved an emissions allowance clause for time charter parties that allocates responsibility and costs for emissions.
Here are the top five stories in alternative fuels this week:
Chile aims to build green hydrogen plants that would double the world's current capacity
The three contracts are part of Corfo’s $1 billion programme to develop six green hydrogen production plants across the country.
The combined production capacity of all the six plants is projected to be 388 MW and they could produce 45,000 mt/year of green hydrogen. This would match the today's entire global production capacity for the renewable fuel grade, claims Corfo.
Only three of the six projects have been announced so far.
French industrial gas supplier Air Liquide is one of the contract winners and plans to build a plant to produce 60,000 mt/year of e-methanol from renewable energy, green hydrogen and captured carbon dioxide. The plant will have an 80 MW electrolyser and be located in Chile’s Antofagasta region.
GNL Quintero, which operates Chile's biggest LNG regasification terminal, will build a plant in the Valparaiso region with a 10 MW electrolyser to produce 500 mt/year of hydrogen.
Iron ore and steel producer CAP will set out to build a 12 MW capacity green hydrogen plant in the Biobio region, pegging its initial production capacity to 1,550 mt/year.
"These projects are the initial kick to accelerate the development of a green hydrogen industry in Chile, which is not only a great opportunity for economic development, but also a key piece to advance towards a fair energy transition,” said Corfo's executive vice president José Miguel Benavente.
Corfo expects to commission all of the projects by the end of 2025.
Earlier this month, the Port of Rotterdam said Chile could produce the world’s cheapest green hydrogen due to its abundant access to renewable energy. Rotterdam aims to set up a green hydrogen corridor from Chile to Europe as it expects demand to pick up.
Shell sets out to build Brazil’s first hydrogen plant
Oil supermajor Shell is developing a hydrogen plant in Brazil’s Porto do Açu to near Rio de Janeiro.
The hydrogen plant will initially have a 10 megawatt (MW) capacity electrolyser to produce hydrogen with mostly renewable electricity from Brazil’s national grid.
Açu is home to the biggest thermoelectric power park in Latin America and says it promotes lower-carbon projects. It is also a major port for iron ore and oil exports.
Shell and Açu expect production to start in 2025, and for capacity to be ramped up and possibly reach 100 MW after that.
“Our purpose with this pilot is to foster the development of an entire value chain of renewable hydrogen generation, from technology suppliers, going through the mastery of plant operation, to the training of skilled labor,” Shell Brazil president André Araujo said.
Some of the hydrogen will be stored and eventually shipped to customers. The rest will be fed into an ammonia production plant.
Shell also has hydrogen projects in Germany, China and the Netherlands.
Its plant in Rhineland, Germany started production in July last year. Like the upcoming Porto do Açu plant, it also has a 10 MW electrolysis capacity that could be scaled to 100 MW in coming years. It produces around 1,300 mt/year of hydrogen.
Its Zhangjiakou plant in China started production in January this year. It has a bigger 20 MW capacity electrolyser.
An upcoming 200 MW capacity plant in Rotterdam is set to become one of the world’s biggest when it is due to start production in 2024.
Container ships will have strong demand for green fuels in Asia – Silk Alliance
A group of shipping firms, engine manufacturers and financial institutions have set out to develop a modern Silk Road to boost uptake and production of green marine fuels.
The Silk Alliance, named after the ancient Silk Road that connected the West with the Middle East and Asia, envision a “highly scalable” green corridor for container ships sailing in Asia.
The alliance is made up of major shipowners, including Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) – the world’s biggest container ship company by TEU - Pacific International Lines (PIL), Wan Hai Lines, X-Press Feeders and Yang Ming Marine Transport.
“We hope that through our participation in The Silk Alliance, we can demonstrate our commitment to decarbonising our fleet, and at the same time working with other stakeholders to establish regional green corridors for feeder shipping utilising low carbon fuel or technology,” PIL general fleet manager Goh Chung Hun said.
The partners say they want to send a strong signal to marine fuel suppliers, ports and governments that there will be future demand for green fuels.
These signals can contribute to lower investment risk and spur uptake of carbon-neutral fuels, they argue.
They have not highlighted any specific green fuels or exactly which ports and countries the corridor will connect. But they say they will tailor a fuel transition strategy to container ships and work with other industry participants to align the project with commitments made during last year’s COP26 climate summit.
The project is spearheaded by the Lloyd’s Register Maritime Decarbonisation Hub.
Shipyard Keppel Offshore & Marine, bunker logistics supplier Singfar International, engine manufacturer Wartsila, ship manager Wilhelmsen Ship Management and financial institutions Asian Development Bank and ING also form part of the alliance.
Singapore’s ammonia bunkering demand to pick up by mid-2030s - DNV
Singapore is likely to source ammonia from Australia, which plans to ramp up production with large units coming online.
Representatives from classification society DNV and Global Centre for Maritime Decarbonisation (GCMD) said they expect demand for ammonia bunkering in Singapore to surge by 2035.
Ammonia bunker demand will get a boost from more ammonia-powered vessels in operation and a more built out supply chain by then, they told a webinar organised by the Ammonia Energy Association today.
DNV principal consultant Dr. Imran Ibrahim insists that even though new types of ammonia ship engines are being developed by major engine manufacturers and could be ready in three years, these technologies are still premature and require several rounds of testing.
Both DNV and GCMD are conducting feasibility studies to determine ammonia bunkering safety standards for Singapore.
GCMD’s director Lau Wei Jie argues that it is critical to evaluate safety standards for the whole ammonia bunkering process rather than just focusing on safe storage of ammonia.
Transfer of pressurised ammonia from bunker barges to vessels requires multiple safety evaluations, DNV's Dr. Ibrahim says.
Ammonia bunkering in Singapore is a bit complex considering the port’s proximity to residential and industrial areas, Wei Jie says. GCMD's will run a series of pilot tests with proxy assets over the next three years to determine technical standards and procedures for ammonia bunkering, he adds.
The duo claims that findings from these studies can be adopted in other ports by using Singapore as a technical reference.
Earlier this month, the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore joined a consortium that plans to develop a supply chain and bunkering infrastructure for ammonia in Singapore.
In an initial analysis, the consortium found that ammonia can be sourced from large production facilities under development in Australia.
Last year, global commodity trader Trafigura unveiled plans to develop an ammonia and hydrogen plant near Port Pirie in South Australia and aims to start exporting green ammonia by 2025.
DNV and GCMD are now scoping out other stakeholders in the maritime industry to develop ammonia safety standards.
Repsol and Aramco to develop synthetic fuel plant in Bilbao
The plant is expected to be commissioned in two years and have capacity to produce 2,100 mt/year of synthetic fuel initially.
Repsol and Aramco have partnered to build a synthetic fuel plant in Spain’s Bilbao. Synthetic fuel will be produced using green hydrogen and carbon dioxide and is likely to be blended further before it can be consumed as marine fuel, they say.
A combination of production technologies developed by BP and technology firm Johnson Matthey will be used in the plant to produce premium synthetic crude oil, says Johnson Matthey.
Synthetic gas generated from industrial emissions, municipal waste and direct air capture can be converted to hydrocarbons through technology developed by BP and Johnson Matthey. The hydrocarbons are suitable to produce diesel and jet fuels, claims Johnson Matthey.
Johnson Matthey recently launched a catalyser technology to convert carbon dioxide and green hydrogen into carbon monoxide, which is then further combined with additional hydrogen to form synthetic gas.
The two technologies allow the firms to produce sustainable fuel from carbon dioxide and green hydrogen "as unique raw materials, says Repsol’s Industrial Transformation and Deep Tech director Adriana Orejas.
