UAE state-owned oil company Adnoc has signed a memorandum of understanding with Thyssenkrupp Uhde, a subsidiary of German engineering and steel conglomerate Thyssenkrupp, to explore the development of large-scale ammonia cracking facilities using the latter’s technology.

Ammonia is emerging as the leading method of transporting hydrogen overseas in the near term, owing to existing infrastructure and standards for safe transportation, storage and use. Europe has 18 ammonia terminals, which imported 4mn t/yr of the fuel in 2020—a fraction of the estimated 22.5mn t/yr required to meet the EU’s import target of 4mn t/yr of “hydrogen-as-ammonia”. However, the figure actually needs to be 30mn t/yr due to reconversion losses, according to Gas for Climate, an association of European gas grid operators.

“We will deliver the last piece of the puzzle for global green hydrogen trade at large scale” Landsmann, Thyssenkrupp

“Countries in Europe, along with many others, depend on green hydrogen imports to decarbonise industry and society. Clean ammonia is the best way to transport hydrogen by ship, and together with Adnoc we will deliver the last piece of the puzzle for global green hydrogen trade at large scale,” says Cord Landsmann, CEO of Thyssenkrupp Uhde.

Adnoc and Thyssenkrupp join a growing list of companies exploring methods to scale up ammonia cracking. In December, a consortium of 18 members—including Saudi Aramco, ExxonMobil, Shell and BP—announced a feasibility study for large-scale ammonia cracking to facilitate the import of 1mn t/yr of hydrogen. Trader Trafigura and US technology firm Amogy announced a joint study in September into the viability and cost-effectiveness of deploying industrial-scale ammonia crackers.

Big spender

Adnoc has recently committed to spending $15bn on an array of decarbonisation initiatives by 2030. The state-owned firm highlights CCS as a key area of investment, which will support the firm’s ambition to scale up blue hydrogen and ammonia production.

Adnoc delivered the first test cargo of blue ammonia to a German customer in October 2022, as the UAE government announced its ambition to corner 25pc of the global low-carbon hydrogen market by 2030.

“Adnoc’s fast-growing hydrogen business is enabled by the UAE’s abundant and competitive energy reserves. We are committed to strengthening our position as a reliable supplier of lower carbon-intensive energy, creating new revenue streams and growing the global market for hydrogen,” says Musabbeh al-Kaabi, executive director for Adnoc’s newly established low-carbon solutions and international growth directorate.

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Author: Polly Martin