A CONCEPT for a floating production unit designed to produce green ammonia at sea has secured approval in principle from classification society DNV.
The P2XFloater concept is based on the conversion of an existing very large gas carrier into a floating production, storage and offloading unit (FPSO) that can produce green ammonia for domestic or global markets.
The industrial scale concept was developed by Norwegian company H2 Carrier. DNV said its approval in principle affirms the technical feasibility of the design.
The FPSO would source electricity from a wind farm or other renewable source to provide power for electrolysis of seawater to produce the hydrogen.
The hydrogen would then be used as part of the so-called Haber-Bosch process, which produces liquid ammonia by combining hydrogen and nitrogen under a high pressure and temperature.
The required nitrogen would also be produced onboard the FPSO.
Conn Fagan, DNV’s vice president business development for floating production, said the AiP covers all aspects of the integrated vessel concept including structural integrity, mooring, ammonia production, ammonia storage and cargo handling.
“The AiP assessment has looked at the technical challenges associated with offshore ammonia production and has concluded that there are no insurmountable difficulties to preclude future classification of the design,” Mr Fagan said.
“For application of the concept in future projects, detailed engineering studies will of course need to be carried out with particular attention to addressing the hazards associated with ammonia and hydrogen for a particular layout and location.”
And Mårten Lunde, CEO of H2 Carrier, said the P2XFloater concept would help produce green ammonia on an industrial scale at a competitive price.
“Market demand is rapidly increasing primarily due to the decarbonisation of the industrial and maritime sectors,” he said.
“We are very pleased to have been awarded the AiP from DNV, which is a significant technical milestone that gives us a springboard for further development towards commercial realisation of this concept.”
