Saudi Arabia has shipped its maiden blue ammonia cargo to Japan to burn possibly together with coal and natural gas for zero-carbon power generation, paving the way forward for the further use of hydrogen in the energy system.
The development came as part of a pilot study, which is being conducted by the Institute of Energy Economics, Japan and Saudi Aramco in partnership with Saudi Basic Industries Corp., the IEEJ said in a joint statement on Sept. 27.
The Saudi-Japan blue ammonia supply demonstration study supported by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry spans from converting hydrocarbons to hydrogen and then to ammonia, as well as the capture of associated carbon dioxide emissions, according to the joint statement.
Ammonia, a compound consisting of three parts hydrogen and one part nitrogen, can help addressing the challenge of meeting the world’s growing energy needs with reliability and sustainability.
“The use of hydrogen is expected to grow in the global energy system, and this world’s first demonstration represents an exciting opportunity for Aramco to showcase the potential of hydrocarbons as a reliable and affordable source of low-carbon hydrogen and ammonia,” Aramco’s chief technology officer Ahmad O. Al-Khowaiter said in the statement…
