Inner Mongolia’s green ammonia used to power the world’s first ammonia-fueled merchant ship, intensifying competition for zero-carbon fuels in shipping

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According to the South Korean Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries and Yonhap News Agency on April 23, Ulsan Port in South Korea completed a filling operation of green ammonia fuel on that day. The task was carried out by Lotte Precision Chemical, using a pipeline-to-ship PTS method to supply approximately 600 tons of green ammonia to the 45,000 cubic meter ammonia carrier \"ANTWERPEN\" built by HD Hyundai Heavy Industries. South Korea says the ship is the world’s first commercially operated ammonia-powered vessel. This batch of green ammonia comes from Inner Mongolia, China. Public information shows that Envision Energy uses renewable energy sources such as wind and solar power to produce green hydrogen, which is then used to synthesize green ammonia. In March this year, Lotte Fine Chemicals imported this batch of green ammonia to South Korea, where it was stored and filled at Ulsan Port. With this refueling, green ammonia has gone through a complete commercial validation process, from hydrogen production using renewable electricity, ammonia synthesis, cross-border transportation, and port storage, to its final use as fuel in ships. The South Korean Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, the Ulsan Regional Office for Oceans and Fisheries, the Ulsan Port Authority, and the Korea Classification Society were involved in safety supervision and standard verification. Ammonia fuel has attracted attention in the shipping industry mainly because its molecule contains no carbon, resulting in no direct carbon dioxide emissions during ship combustion. Compared to liquid hydrogen, the storage and transportation conditions for liquid ammonia are relatively more relaxed, and existing ammonia trading and storage infrastructure can also be partially utilized. For ocean shipping, green ammonia is therefore considered one of the potential zero-carbon fuels. However, green ammonia still faces barriers to large-scale application. First is safety. Ammonia is toxic; higher standards are required for filling, storage, leak detection, fire protection, and emergency response. What makes this operation at Ulsan Port noteworthy is that it completed the verification of the on-port vessel refueling and supervision processes. Next is cost. Green ammonia is produced by first generating green hydrogen using green electricity, and then combining it with nitrogen. Costs are influenced by the price of green electricity, electrolyzer efficiency, the load on the synthesis equipment, cross-border transportation costs, and end-use storage and transportation expenses. At present, green ammonia still finds it difficult to compete directly with traditional fuels, and its widespread use depends on a reduction in the costs of green electricity and green hydrogen at the upstream level. Supply is also a constraint. There are many global green ammonia projects, but only a limited number truly possess stable production capacity, certification systems, transportation infrastructure, and downstream users. Even when shipowners order ammonia-powered ships, they still need a port refueling network to support them. Fuel, ports, and ships must not be disconnected from one another. Progress at the ship’s bow is also in the early stages. Public industry data shows that the number of ships compatible with ammonia fuel worldwide remains low, and orders will be delivered gradually in the coming years. In the short term, green ammonia will primarily serve as a tool for demonstration and validation, and it will take some time before a market for frequent refueling with it can be established. Compared to green ammonia fuel, green methanol has made faster progress in terms of storage, transportation, refueling, and engine compatibility, and it has already seen widespread use in the shipping industry. In addition to using green hydrogen to produce green fuels, domestic companies are also pursuing various other approaches. The green methanol production route based on the full-carbon directed conversion of biogas, developed by Fujie Technology, utilizes organic waste and biogas resources; it has obtained both ISCC-EU and ISCC-PLUS certifications, and produces green methanol that meets the standards for use as fuel in international shipping. Compared to green ammonia, this approach places greater emphasis on waste valorization, carbon source utilization, and shipping fuel certification. Overall, green methanol still holds a competitive advantage, while green ammonia still needs to address issues related to safety standards, supply scale, and cost constraints.