Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) has announced that it has sold its first cargo of blue ammonia to Itochu in Japan in partnership with Fertiglobe, the largest nitrogen producer in the Middle East and North Africa with plants located in the UAE, Egypt and Algeria.

 

A joint venture between OCI and Adnoc, Fertiglobe will be producing blue ammonia at its Fertil plant in the Ruwais Industrial Complex in Abu Dhabi for delivery to Adnoc’s customers in Japan.

 

The sale builds upon recently announced joint efforts to enhance industrial cooperation between the UAE and Japan and support the development of new UAE-Japan blue ammonia supply chains, said a statement  from Adnoc.

 

The Abu Dhabi group has a long history of responsible operations and proactive carbon management. The company’s emissions intensity per barrel is amongst the lowest in the industry, and it was an early leader in implementing a zero routine flaring policy three decades ago. 

 

The shipments, which were sold at an attractive premium to grey ammonia, underscore the favourable economics for blue ammonia as an emerging source of low-carbon energy. They 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 programme at Fertil.

 

In addition, it was announced in June that Fertiglobe will join Adnoc and ADQ as a partner in a new world-scale one million metric tonnes per annum blue ammonia project at TA’ZIZ in Ruwais, subject to regulatory approvals.

 

Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and Adnoc Managing Director and Group CEO, said: "Today’s 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."

 

"Through the expansion of our capabilities across the blue ammonia value chain, we look forward to furthering our legacy as one of the world’s least carbon-intensive hydrocarbon producers and supporting industrial decarbonisation with a competitive low-carbon product portfolio," he stated.

 

Masaya Tanaka, Executive Officer of Itochu Corporation, President of the Energy & Chemicals Company and COO of the Power & Environmental Solution Division, said: "As a leading general trading company in Japan, we are pleased to contribute to a low-carbon society together with Adnoc. Starting with this trial of blue ammonia for fertiliser applications, we aim to create a wide range of ammonia value chains for existing industrial applications as well as future energy use."

 

"By collaborating with Adnoc and Fertiglobe, we expect to initiate and enhance our industrial portfolio in the fertiliser sector while achieving our commitments towards decarbonisation activities in other industries," he added.

 

Nassef Sawiris, Executive Chairman of OCI and CEO of Fertiglobe, said: "As a result of decarbonising the feedstock supply, we can materially reduce the carbon intensity of our downstream customers along the value chain and across a wide range of industries."

 

Fertiglobe is the world’s largest seaborne exporter of nitrogen fertilisers, and its Fertil plant is one of the largest regional fertiliser producers with a production capacity of 1.2 million metric tonnes of ammonia and 2.1 million metric tonnes of urea. 

 

While the ammonia Fertil produces is typically considered as "grey" ammonia, the plant will be fitted with CO2 liquefaction units, and CO2 will be transferred to - and reinjected into - underground reservoirs by the Adnoc Al Reyadah carbon capture and storage plant to facilitate the production of blue ammonia.

 

"We are pleased to leverage the Fertiglobe and Adnoc platforms to help decarbonise our production and customers’ footprints while creating value to shareholders, a win-win across the board. This project shows that Fertiglobe is on track to become a global leader in low-carbon solutions, leveraging its globally leading position in ammonia," he added.-TradeArabia News Service