Overview of the available FAQ's
- What is ammonia and where is it used for?
- Ammonia is toxic, how can the safety of the sea farers be guaranteed?
- What is the timeline for EXMAR’s ammonia fueled ships?
- Will the auxiliary engines also be powered by ammonia?
- When will the ammonia dual fueled engines be ready?
- How will the ammonia fuel injection work?
- What will be the emissions when operating on ammonia as fuel?
- Will the dual fuel engine require Pilot fuel?
- What will be the ammonia consumption?
- Can the vessel use ammonia as fuel in all Operational conditions?
- What is the difference for the ship using grey, blue or green ammonia?
- Will the safety principle of the engine room be affected
- What will be the sailing range of the vessel using ammonia?
- How will the ships be bunkered?
- Does the crew needs to get additional training for Ammonia as fuel?
1. What is ammonia and where is it used for?
Ammonia is an inorganic compound of nitrogen and hydrogen which in ambient conditions is a colorless gas with a very strong smell. It is toxic to human life already in small concentrations which means it needs to be handled in a professional way with the highest care. In order to transport ammonia in an efficient way, it is liquefied and stored in cargo tanks on board of a ship in liquid form at a temperature of – 33°C.
Ammonia is produced using the Haber-Bosch process which was invented in 1909. The feedstock for this process is pure hydrogen and nitrogen. Originally the hydrogen feedstock was produced using electrolysis of water and the nitrogen was purified out of the air. Hence using the Haber-Bosch process, very simple ingredients were needed to produce ammonia: water, electricity and air. Once natural gas became abundantly available in the ‘60s, the hydrogen production was shifting from electrolysis to steam methane reforming. It was found much cheaper to produce hydrogen by splitting methane into its base components and releasing the by-product, which is CO2, into the air. At that time, the adverse effect of CO2 on climate change was not yet known.
Ammonia produced using steam reforming of natural gas is currently labeled as “grey” ammonia. The production process has a certain CO2 footprint which now comes with a cost in certain regions of the world where CO2 emission trading schemes are starting to be applied. In order to mitigate the CO2 emissions, the ammonia production plants using natural gas as feedstock are looking into capturing and storing the CO2 produced during the production process. Ammonia produced in combination with CCS is labeled as “blue” ammonia. Lastly, in order to fully avoid the CO2 emissions, several producers are looking at projects to shift back to the production of ammonia using electrolysis. When renewable electricity is used, the ammonia produced in this way is labeled as “green” ammonia.
Totally, the world production of ammonia amounts to about 180 million tons in 2023. Nearly all of that production is currently based on fossil fuels. The largest part of the ammonia, over 70%, is used for the production of fertilizers and hence this is very important part of the global food supply chain. Other applications for ammonia include e.g. urea for the SCR technology, TNT production for the mining industry, refrigerant, base chemical for fabrics industry, base chemical for plastics manufacturing, etc…
2. Ammonia is toxic, how can the safety of the sea farers be guaranteed?
With 40 years of experience in handling NH3 as cargo, EXMAR’s seafarers are best placed to operate ammonia fueled gas carriers. During the design and development of the vessel all potential risks were evaluated and mitigated with valuable input from our seafarers. The necessary safety studies and risk assessments took place to meet this target. A Risk Based Design Assessment was conducted using a methodology provided by the Classification Society, Lloyds Register. Using the input of the key stake holders; EXMAR, HMD (shipyard), WINGD (engine maker)and Wartsila Gas Solutions (supply system maker) supported by the BELGIAN flagstate a safe design concept was obtained. Safety principles which are common in the gas shipping industry, like double barriers, gas detection, closed loop systems, hazardous area classification etc. will be installed.
3. What is the timeline for EXMAR’s ammonia fueled ships?
The first four ammonia fueled ships which EXMAR ordered from HMD will be delivered in 2026, one in each quarter.
4. Will the auxiliary engines also be powered by ammonia?
Since the step to bring a toxic cargo in the engine room is challenging, EXMAR decided to follow a step by step approach here. For that reason only the main engine will be powered by ammonia. The auxiliary engines on this first series of ships will remain operating on compliant fuel. A shaft generator will however be fitted to create the necessary auxiliary power while sailing using ammonia as fuel, which will allow the auxiliary engines to be switched off.
5. When will the ammonia dual fueled engines be ready?
The ammononia fueled engines are currently being developped and will be ready mid 2025.
6. How will the ammonia fuel injection work?
Courtesy of WINGD
7. What will be the emissions when operating on ammonia as fuel?
Due to the absence of carbon in the ammonia molecule, burning ammonia in a ship’s engine simply doesn’t cause any CO2 emissions. The only emissions out of the stack of an ammonia fueled ship are water vapor and nitrogen, with some traces of NOX and N2O. A small amount of CO2 emissions will be created by the pilot fuel. In general the CO2 equivalent emissions will be 90% lower compared to diesel mode operations.
- NOx emissions will be tier II and tier III compliant in the respective areas using Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) technology.
- N2O emissions will be limited over the entire load range
- Ammonia Slip will be less than 10ppm after the SCR
- CO2 from pilot fuel will be limited
Obviously the GHG footprint of the ammonia production needs to be taken into account which makes clean ammonia (“blue” or “green”) the best suited candidates to significantly lower the GHG footprint of shipping
8. Will the dual fuel engine require Pilot fuel?
Pilot fuel will be required in ammonia dual fuel mode. The pilot fuel is expected to be abt. 5% at 100% load.
9. What will be the ammonia consumption and CO2 emissions of these vessels?
We kindly refer you to our commercial team which will be happy to share with you the necessary information on consumption and CO2 emissions. They can be reached at chartering [at] exmar.be
10. Can the vessel use ammonia as fuel in all Operational conditions?
At low engine loads, for example during maneuvring, it will not be possible to operate the engine in ammonia mode. Ammonia as fuel will be used during sea passage. The Shaft Generator will allow to generate the necessary electrical power using ammonia. During maneuvering and cargo operations in port the vessel will switch to compliant fuel.
11. What is the difference for the ship using grey, blue or green ammonia?
There is no difference for the ship in terms of propulsion on grey, blue or green ammonia. Yet sailing on blue or green ammonia will play a key role in assuring the ammonia meets the minimum ‘clean’ requirements that the import region has adopted. Heavy carbon taxes such as ETS and FuelEU.
Maritime penalties can be reduced and even avoided sailing on blue and green ammonia. Furthermore, the CII impact will be minimal as the sea passage on ammonia is carbon-free.
More information required? Reach out to chartering [at] exmar.be
12. Will the safety principle of the engine room be affected
No, the engine room will remain a gas safe area. All equipment of the supply system will be installed on the main deck in the cargo area. The design was made as such that the engine and fuel supply piping will be completely double walled ensuring this safety principle. The necessary detection system will be fitted as well to increase the level of safety.
13. What will be the sailing range of the vessel using ammonia?
With the content of the deck tanks and when using the shaft generator the vessel can sail abt. 10 days. To allow further voyages part of the cargo can be used to fill the deck tanks and as such propel the ship. Because of the cargo tank capacity of 45,000m3 this allows the vessel to transport a parcel size which is larger than today’s standard 40,000m3 ship can move, while still using part of her cargo as fuel.
14. How will the ships be bunkered?
When ammonia as cargo is used, a small portion of this cargo will be used as fuel. When the vessel transports another cargo like LPG, bunkering can be done via the cargo manifold. Additional features have been foreseen and added in the vessel design to allow a smooth bunker operation of the deck tanks, keeping full segregation of the cargo which is being transported.
15. Does the crew needs to get additional training for Ammonia as fuel?
Having the experience of shipping ammonia for over 40 years, EXMAR is in the unique position of having already a dedicated pool of highly trained seafarers which are known to the product. Nevertheless, to sail on a vessel fueled by ammonia, the product will enter the engine room and therefore new safety standards will need to be drafted and adopted to ensure safe operations. EXMAR crew is fully committed and involved from the beginning in this project to ensure a tailor-made training program is defined and rolled out. For this training program EXMAR will work closely together with relevant OEM’s, maritime academies and other stakeholders.