Nordic Green Ammonia-Powered Ship

Decarbonizing the global economy – an urgent priority if the world is to avoid the worst impacts of climate change – cannot be achieved without the decarbonization of global shipping. Momentum is building behind the transition to zero-emission shipping, and there is growing understanding of what needs to be achieved by when.

June 02 2021

Understanding of the technological solutions needed to deliver that objective is also growing. Increasingly, ammonia-powered shipping is seen as central to achieving these objectives. Among zero-emission fuels, ammonia offers many advantages related to its potential scalability and application on long-distance routes. There is an urgent need to demonstrate the viability of powering ships with green ammonia – demonstrations that will need to encompass the design and construction of new vessels, a sourcing strategy for green ammonia fuel, and the elaboration of credible business and financial models.

The Nordic Green Ammonia-Powered Ship (NoGAPS) project brings together key players in the value chain for a Nordic-based ammonia-powered vessel. Together this consortium has elaborated a concept for an ammonia-powered gas carrier, transporting ammonia as a cargo in Northern Europe and using zero-emission ammonia as a fuel.

The consortium investigated the vessel, the fuel and the fueling options, as well as the business and financing considerations. The major conclusions were clear:

  1. The potential of ammonia-powered shipping to contribute to the decarbonization of the maritime sector is significant, and ammonia carriers present a logical starting point for demonstrating this potential.
  2. Neither the technical considerations nor the associated regulatory approval for an ammonia-powered vessel present major obstacles to putting the M/S NoGAPS on the water.
  3. Ammonia synthesized from green hydrogen represents a credible long-term, zero-emission fuel.
  4. The most important challenge to be overcome is to develop and demonstrate a business model that is credible in the eyes of investors and operators. Both the vessel design and the fuel sourcing strategy offer opportunities to reduce risks and costs in meaningful ways.
  5. Government support and public finance can both accelerate the short-term timetable for investment in demonstration and improve the outlook for long-term deployment of ammonia as a shipping fuel.

The NoGAPS project report has been developed by the Global Maritime Forum and Fürstenberg Maritime Advisory and made possible through collaboration with consortium project partners; BW Epic Kosan, Danish Ship Finance, DNB, DNV, MAN Energy Solutions, Wärtsilä, Yara International, and Ørsted with co-funding from Nordic Innovation.

Download the full Nordic Green Ammonia-Powered Ship project report here.