Yara Clean Ammonia, the world’s largest trader and distributor of ammonia, has forged a long-term deal with India-based Greenko ZeroC, the green ammonia production arm of AM Green.
This historic deal majorly boosts the green ammonia industry and propels the net zero goals of both economies.
Unlocking the Key Features of the Green Ammonia Deal
The agreement and the term sheet ensure the supply of 50% renewable ammonia from Phase 1 of AM Green’s ammonia production plant located in Kakinada, Andhra Pradesh.
The document further states that Greenko’s plant will produce, and export renewable ammonia derived from round-the-clock carbon-free energy by 2027.
The press release from Yara Ammonia highlights two important aspects of this deal:
- AM Green’s platform will ensure compliance with EU RFNBO and Renewable Energy Directive requirements for renewable ammonia and other sustainable fuels.
- Yara Clean Ammonia will utilize the renewable ammonia supply to manufacture low-emission fertilizer and to decarbonize industries such as shipping, power, and energy-intensive sectors.
Mr. Mahesh Kolli, President of AM Green has expressed himself with a note,
“We are delighted to partner with Yara Clean Ammonia to propel the transformation of various industries and several OECD economies. Continuous focus on innovation combined with execution reinforces AM Green’s leadership position as a global clean energy transition solutions platform for low-cost green molecules such as hydrogen, ammonia, fuels, and other chemicals.”
Clean Ammonia: Fuelling the Future
Ammonia, with no CO2 emissions upon combustion, is poised to be a key fuel in the future, aligning well with the hydrogen economy. Unlike liquid hydrogen, ammonia doesn’t require extreme cooling and boasts superior energy density. This renders it more practical for transportation and storage.
Moreover, ammonia production utilizing renewable energy sources leads to negligible or zero GHG emissions.
Scaling Up: AM Green’s Bold Plan for a Mega-Scale Green Ammonia Platform
Founded by the creators of Greenko Group, the company is building production capacity for green molecules, including:
- green hydrogen
- ammonia,
- biofuels and e-methanol
- sustainable aviation fuels,
- high-value downstream chemicals
Its main goal is to decarbonize the tough industries. Additionally, Greenko plans to establish an international renewables and storage business by collaborating with John Cockerill of Belgium. Together they would manufacture electrolyzers to produce green ammonia.
Uniper and Greenko signed exclusivity for Green Ammonia offtake to the EU from India’s first Green Ammonia Project in Kakinada. Their press release states that they have collaborated to negotiate innovative pricing and supply. Together they would “build a tenure structure for a unique supply and purchase agreement for 250,000 T per annum of Green Ammonia (GASPA) based on the Heads of Terms.”
Greenko’s Kakinada project is a multi-phase green ammonia production and export facility. It would be one of the world’s largest green ammonia platforms.
Furthermore, the company’s annual report reveals that:
- Greenko is building a 2 GW per year Alkaline Electrolyser manufacturing capacity. It can produce 1 Lakh TPA Green Ammonia that will be operational by 2024.
- Further, 1 MTPA Green Ammonia manufacturing capacity will be supplemented in the next two consecutive years summing up to 3.1 MTPA capacity by the end of 2026.
- Additionally, there are plans to increase the capacity to 5 MT per annum by 2030.
Greenko’s Green H2 and Energy Carrier Architecture
source: Greenko
Yara’s Ambitious Decarbonization Goals for its Ammonia Plant
Yara Clean Ammonia headquartered in Oslo, Norway operates the largest global ammonia network with 15 ships. Through Yara, it has access to 18 ammonia terminals and multiple ammonia production and consumption sites worldwide.
In 2021, Yara received NOK 283.25 million from Enova to develop a green ammonia initiative. It marked the first step towards fully decarbonizing the Herøya ammonia plant in Porsgrunn, Norway.
The Herøya fertilizer factory ranks among Norway’s top CO2 emitters outside the oil and gas sector, releasing 800,000 tonnes of CO2 annually. Hydrogen, vital in fertilizer production, is currently derived from liquefied fossil gas, but Yara aims to shift to renewable energy sources, enabling emission-free ammonia production.
CEO Svein Tore Holsether emphasizes Norway’s unique opportunity to lead the green transition. He highlighted green ammonia’s versatility and its role in reducing emissions in global food production and long-distance shipping. Yara’s corporate board commits to investing in a 24 MW demonstration plant, making it one of the world’s largest green ammonia production projects.
Yara reports that this shift to renewable energy will cut CO2 emissions by about 41,000 tons yearly. It would also produce enough hydrogen to yield 60,000 – 80,000 tonnes of green, fossil-free mineral fertilizer annually.
Another landmark deal is the Yara Clean Ammonia and Cepsa partnership. This initiative aims to decarbonize the European industry and maritime transport by creating a secure and cost-effective supply chain for low-emission ammonia and hydrogen.
Strategy scorecard of Yara Ammonia
source: Yara’s report
Considering the AM Green collaboration, Hans Olav Raen, CEO, of Yara Clean Ammonia commented,
“The AM Green Kakinada project expands our portfolio of ammonia produced with renewable energy and consolidates Yara Clean Ammonia’s position as a reliable supplier of low-emission ammonia to established and emerging markets like fertilizer production, cracking of clean ammonia to hydrogen, shipping fuel, power generation, and other industrial applications.”
We can conclude from this report that the Yara Ammonia-Greenko deal could revolutionize sustainable energy architecture by ambitiously ramping up green ammonia production and supply. Notably, it indicates a substantial potential!
