FRANKFURT (Reuters) – German energy utility EnBW said on Thursday it will purchase 100,000 tonnes of green ammonia annually from Norway’s Skipavika Green Ammonia project from 2027, supporting Germany’s efforts to decarbonise industrial processes.
Green ammonia, produced using renewable energy, can be used to produce hydrogen using a cracking process that produces low CO2 emissions.
As an alternative to fossil fuels, Germany is relying on green hydrogen, which is produced through electrolysis using wind and solar energy.
EnBW will collect the ammonia from the port of Skipavika near Bergen on Norway’s west coast and deliver it to hydrogen splitting terminals at Western European terminals or industrial sites in Germany, the company said as it opened registration for a tender process.
The Skipavika Green Ammonia (SkiGa) project will use local green electricity to operate its 130 megawatt (MW) electrolyzer and could save 240,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions compared to the production of so-called grey hydrogen from coal or gas, it said.
EnBW’s local partner FUELLA received funding for its electrolyzer project and six competing projects in April in a first pilot auction of the European Hydrogen Bank, which will provide €720 million ($781.27 million) in grants from the Innovation Fund over a ten-year period.
Last year, EnBW entered into a cooperation with FUELLA and secured the exclusive rights to a long-term ammonia purchase agreement with a 10 percent share.
“The quantities of green ammonia secured for EnBW give us a good starting position in the market ramp-up and mark a further step on the way to a CO2-free energy supply,” says Peter Heydecker, EnBW Board Member for Sustainable Generation Infrastructure.
The federal government adopted a strategy for the import of hydrogen and derivatives on Wednesday.
As part of Germany’s national strategy, up to 70 percent of future hydrogen quantities are to come from overseas for reasons of availability and cost.
EnBW said it is looking for sources and partners worldwide for all types of hydrogen. Hydrogen derivatives can be methanol, ammonia or other e-fuels.
(1 US dollar = 0.9216 euros)
(Reporting by Vera Eckert, editing by Jane Merriman)
