Dubai: The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) in partnership with Fertiglobe has sold its first cargo of blue ammonia to Japanese trading firm Itochu for use in fertilizer production. Fertiglobe, a joint venture between chemicals maker OCI and ADNOC, will produce blue ammonia at its Fertil plant in Ruwais for delivery to ADNOC’s customers in Japan.
The shipments, which were sold at an attractive premium to ‘grey ammonia’, represent the first production milestone of a planned scale-up of blue ammonia production capabilities in Abu Dhabi, which is expected to include a low-cost debottlenecking program at Fertil. Fertiglobe will join ADNOC and ADQ as a partner in a new 1 million metric tons per annum blue ammonia project at Ta’ziz in Ruwais, subject to regulatory approvals.
The "announcement builds upon ADNOC’s commitment to expanding the UAE’s position as a regional leader in the production of hydrogen and its carrier fuels, meeting the needs of critical global export markets such as Japan," said Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and ADNOC Managing Director and Group CEO.
Ammonia matters
Ammonia is used as a low-carbon fuel across a wide range of industrial applications, including transportation, power generation, refining and industries including steel, wastewater treatment, cement and fertilizer production. For Japan, in particular, hydrogen and its carrier fuels, such as blue ammonia, are expected to play an important role in the country’s ongoing industrial decarbonization efforts.
"Starting with this trial of blue ammonia for fertilizer applications, we aim to create a wide range of ammonia value chains for existing industrial applications as well as future energy use," said Masaya Tanaka, Executive Officer of Itochu Corp., President of the Energy & Chemicals Company and COO of the Power & Environmental Solution Division.
