Consortium makes progress on US NH3 bunker vessel

A group of companies continue to make progress on developing a ship-to-ship ammonia bunkering vessel for the US east coast, targeting to begin commercial operations by 2030.

The consortium received in principle approval in August for their ammonia bunker vessel from US classification society the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS). The seven companies comprise Japanese trading house Sumitomo, ABS, Hong Kong-based shipping firm Fleet Management, American ship management company TOTE Services, Danish shipping firm AP Moller Maresk, Maresk's decarbonisation research institute Maersk Mc-Kinney Moller Center for Zero Carbon Shipping (MMMCZCS) and the US' Georgia Ports Authority. US marine engineering firm Vard Marine US also took part in barge design and engineering.

The bunker vessel is designed to be capable of supplying fuel ammonia to Norwegian shipping company Hoegh Autoliners' car carriers, as well as an ammonia-fuelled container vessels developed by MMMCZCS. This will be the first ammonia bunkering vessel in the US, Sumitomo said.

The partners expect to operate the ship on the east coast of the US such as Jacksonville port in Florida and Brunswick and Savannah ports in Georgia. These ports are increasingly receiving container ships and car carriers, with Sumitomo expecting demand for fuel ammonia for such vessels to grow in the future.

Sumitomo is in charge of building a supply chain of green or blue ammonia for bunkering. It now plans to buy blue ammonia from the US Gulf of Mexico region, without specifying volumes.

The company aims to enhance its carbon neutral marine fuel and ammonia bunkering businesses with the US project. It has also participated in an ammonia bunkering project in Singapore, aiming to commercialise it by the mid-2020s.

By Nanami Oki