An industrial-scale green ammonia floating production unit has been given Approval in Principle by DNV, which the classification association says affirms it has technical feasibilty.
Erik Henriksen, director of Business Development - Offshore Classification, DNV (left) and Sebastian Kihle chief technology officer, H2Carrier
With the race intensifying for sustainable future fuel production, the P2XFloater concept by Norway-based H2 Carrier has been given the AiP to convert an existing large gas carrier into a floating, production, storage and offloading unit (FPSO) to serve the local or international market.
”The FPSO would source electricity from a wind farm or other renewable source to provide power for electrolysis of seawater to produce the hydrogen as input to the so-called Haber-Bosch process, which produces liquid ammonia by combining hydrogen and nitrogen under high pressure and high temperature,” says DNV. ”The required nitrogen would also be produced onboard the FPSO.”
Conn Fagany, DNV vice president, Business Development for Floating Production, said the AiP covered many aspects of the integrated vessel concept.
“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,” he 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.”
H2 Carrier said market demand was increasing so rapidly for solutions to decarbonising industrial and maritime sectors that the AiP would be a timely springboard from which to explore the concept.