Asia/Pacific News
Singapore Sees First Ammonia Bunkering Trial
The first ammonia bunkering trial has been carried out in Singapore, in a significant step towards demonstrating the fuel can be used safely.
About 3 mt of ammonia was delivered to the Fortescue Green Pioneer before its voyage from Singapore to Dubai in December, Singapore's Maritime and Port Authority said in a statement on its website on Friday.
Trials using the fuel were then carried out over the next seven weeks.
The vessel had been converted to a dual-fuelled model capable of running on ammonia earlier in the year.
The fuel was supplied from Vopak's Banyan Terminal on Jurong Island.
"The successful conduct of this ammonia fuel trial on board the Fortescue Green Pioneer marks a significant milestone in Singapore's multi-fuel bunkering capability development to support the digitalisation, decarbonisation, and manpower development for international shipping," the MPA said in the statement.
"The collective support provided for such trials also demonstrates the facilitative regulatory environment, and the strong research and tripartite ecosystem in Singapore to support the conduct of trials and scale-up operations for new maritime fuels."
Ammonia is widely expected to take up a significant share of future marine energy demand because of its lack of associated carbon emissions. But further research and development work will need to be completed first looking into how its toxicity can be managed when handling it as a bunker fuel.
