Adnoc sends first low-carbon ammonia shipment from UAE to Germany

Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) announced that its first shipment of low-carbon ammonia has left the United Arab Emirates (UAE) bound for Hamburg, Germany. This is the first ever cargo of low-carbon ammonia to be shipped to Germany.

The demonstration cargo will be delivered to Aurubis, a leading global provider of non-ferrous metals and one of the largest copper recyclers worldwide, that has its headquarters in Hamburg. On arrival in Germany, Hamburger Hafen und Logistik AG (HHLA), one of Europe’s leading logistics companies will handle the cargo.

Produced by Fertiglobe, a partnership between Adnoc and OCI, at its Fertil plant in Abu Dhabi’s Ruwais industrial complex, the demonstration cargo is the first of several test cargoes sold to customers in Germany as Adnoc expands its strategic energy partnership across the hydrogen value chain. The cargo follows a number of similar low-carbon ammonia sales that have been made to customers in Asia. Aurubis plans to utilize the low-carbon ammonia as a feedstock in its wire rod plant, testing its application as an additional, lower-carbon energy source for industial ulilisation. The hydrogen it contains has the potential to be a low-carbon energy alternative for the energy-intensive processes in multi-metal production.

This is another important milestone in the planned scale-up of hydrogen and low-carbon ammonia production capabilities in Abu Dhabi, where Adnoc is developing a new world-scale 1 million tons per annum low-carbon ammonia plant at TA’ZIZ, the chemicals, industrial services and logistics hub in the Ruwais Industrial Complex.

Dr Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and Adnoc Managing Director and Group CEO, said: “This demonstration cargo of low-carbon ammonia builds upon the longstanding bilateral relationship between the UAE and Germany and our growing partnership in clean energy. It highlights Adnoc’s expanding role as a trusted exporter of low-carbon fuels, as the UAE focuses on the industrial growth opportunities within the energy transition.

“Our collaboration with customers in Germany also underlines Adnoc’s ambitious growth plans for the production of clean hydrogen, and its carrier fuels such as ammonia, which will play a critical role in decarbonizing hard-to-abate industrial sectors. We are committed to accelerating and deepening private and public sector collaboration in clean hydrogen projects that will reduce carbon emissions and the carbon intensity of the energy that supports our everyday lives.”

Roland Harings, CEO of Aurubis, said: “As the most efficient and sustainable smelter network in the world, Aurubis provides metals that are key for megatrends such as renewable energies, electric mobility and digitalization and hence for decarbonization. To guarantee stable processes at our sites, we are expanding our portfolio of reliable energy sources and thus investing in the decarbonization of our production at the same time. This first trial shipment of low-carbon ammonia from Adnoc represents an important milestone in our long-term vision for hydrogen solutions that will help meet our decarbonization goals.”