Singapore advances ammonia bunkering project

The Energy Market Authority (EMA) and Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) have shortlisted six consortiums whose proposals will be further developed in a closed Request for Proposal (RFP) to provide ammonia power generation and 100,000 t/y ammonia bunkering on Jurong Island.

This RFP is the next stage in the selection of a developer for the project, following the Expression of Interest (EOI) that was launched in December 2022 and closed at the end of April 2023.

Hydrogen strategy

Under the EOI, EMA and MPA received a total of 26 proposals, underscoring strong interest from local and international companies.

The six proposals shortlisted for the RFP were selected based on the technical, land optimisation, safety and commercial aspects of their proposals.

This RFP seeks to select a lead developer that the Government will work with to jointly develop the proposed end-to-end ammonia solution.

This solution comprises generating 55 – 65 MW of electricity from imported low- or zero-carbon ammonia via direct combustion in a Gas Turbine/Combined Cycle Gas Turbine; and facilitating ammonia bunkering at a capacity of at least 0.1 million tonnes per annum (MTPA), starting with shore-to-ship bunkering followed by ship-to-ship bunkering.

The Government has said that given the nascency of the technology and global supply chains, it work closely with the selected developer to implement the project. The RFP will be launched before the end of 2023.

A key thrust of Singapore’s National Hydrogen Strategy, announced at the Singapore International Energy Week in October 2022, is to experiment with the use of advanced hydrogen technologies that are on the cusp of commercial readiness.

This project will help position Singapore as one of the first countries in the world to test and deploy a direct ammonia combustion power plant and support the holistic assessment of ammonia bunkering for both international shipping and domestic harbour craft.