Two transfers took place between the Green
Pioneer (owner MOL), a 35,000 cubic metres (cbm) ammonia carrier, and
the Navigator Global (owner Navigator Gas), a 22,500 cbm ammonia carrier. Yara
Clean Ammonia (YCA) provided the ammonia used in the transfers.
The first transfer involved 4,000 cbm
(approximately 2,700 tonnes) of ammonia from the Green Pioneer to the Navigator
Global at the Port of Dampier. The same ammonia cargo was then transferred back
from the Navigator Global to the Green Pioneer. Each transfer operation took approximately six hours, with the first
transfer completed at 0830 hours on 14 September.
A tripartite collaboration between the Global
Centre for Maritime Decarbonisation (GCMD), Pilbara
Ports and YCA was formed to realise Pilbara’s
potential as a low-greenhouse gas (GHG) emission ammonia bunkering hub. This
region was previously highlighted by a Global Maritime Forum study as a viable
location for ammonia bunkering. Construction to enable renewable ammonia
production by 2025 has commenced at Yara Pilbara’s facility.
The successful transfers demonstrate the operational viability of future
ammonia bunkering in the Pilbara region of Western Australia.
This pilot also marks a step towards
operationalising a low-GHG emission shipping route for international iron ore
trade, which is projected to require 1 to 1.5 million tonnes of ammonia by
2035, according to a joint 2023 study undertaken by Pilbara Ports, Yara Clean
Ammonia and Lloyd’s Register.
In the absence of ammonia bunkering vessels and ammonia-fuelled ships at
this stage, ship-to-ship transfers at anchorage offer the closest proxy to
bunkering operations when it replicates the essential steps involved.
With this objective in mind, the trial began
with a transfer at the Port of Dampier as a proxy to breakbulk, leveraging the
port’s experience with ammonia export. The second transfer demonstrated the
potential of bunkering operations, extendable also to other ports nearby, where
such future operations for bulk carriers are expected to take place.
To operationalise this pair of transfers, the consortium built on proven
procedures and incorporated additional safety mitigation measures.
These measures include the use of emergency
release couplings, emergency shutdown devices and other safety equipment, and
the implementation of hot-gas and nitrogen purging procedures after ammonia
transfer. These were developed in close collaboration with safety consultants,
ship-to-ship transfer service providers, ports, Australian Government agencies
and experienced operators of ammonia vessels and a producer.
To mimic future ammonia bunkering scenarios, the
Pilbara trials deployed a handysize and a midsize gas carrier with capacities
that are similar to that expected of ammonia bunker vessels.