Americas News
Ammonia Marine Fuel Offers Competitive Advantage: Report
Ammonia as bunker fuel can play a key role in business strategy as shipping companies focus on how best to meet the greenhouse gas emission goals set by the International Maritime Organization, a new report has said.
The ammonia report, from US-based consultancy Carbon Neutral Consulting (CNC), argues that "strong strategic planning can enable maritime companies to thrive through a multi-decade period of disruption".
"Ammonia's presence within the decarbonization option set, changes the strategic calculus in important ways," CNC said.
Companies that build their business strategies on this understanding, "will have a competitive advantage over those that don't", it added.
Report author Stephen Crolius said that having looked at the issue closely, "we came to realize that the ammonia fuel concept could have far-reaching implications that maritime companies could use to their advantage".
Fellow author Milton Bevington agrees and said there are parallels between a maritime business strategy involving ammonia and the notion of a dominant strategy in game theory.
"For companies in the maritime sector, an ammonia-oriented action plan comes very close to being [a] kind of 'dominant strategy,' [which is] a business plan that enables commercial success across a period of intense disruption regardless of the actions of your competitors," he said.
The report claims to be able "to serve as a springboard for the creation of a company-specific strategy and effective plan of action".
Ammonia is one of a number of alternative fuels that are being actively considered by players in the shipping industry.
