Keppel, MHI, DNV to explore adoption of ammonia-fired gas turbine
KUCHING: In a memorandum of understanding (MOU), Keppel Infrastructure’s wholly owned subsidiary Keppel New Energy Pte Ltd (Keppel New Energy), Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd (MHI) and DNV, a global independent energy expert and assurance provider, announced a strategic collaboration to explore the feasibility and implementation of an ammoniafired gas turbine in Singapore.
The MOU will see the three companies work together to perform a high-level Quantitative Risk Assessment to explore the use of 100 per cent ammonia as a fuel for a gas turbine or combined cycle gas turbine (CCGT) - towards the potential development of an Ammonia Power Plant.
Under the MOU, Keppel will study the feasibility of an ammonia fuelled power plant, while MHI, with support from its power solutions brand, Mitsubishi Power, will develop an ammonia-fired gas turbine that produces carbon-neutral power to pursue the expansion of the ammonia fuel supply chain in Singapore.
Alongside this, DNV will lend its assurance and risk management expertise to prepare and present a QRA analysis on the project.
“Ammonia is a potential key component to building a hydrogen society,” MHI’s GTCC Business Division general manager for international sales and marketing department Takao Tsukui said.
“Mitsubishi Power has pioneered world-class gas turbine and hydrogen fuel combustion technologies for more than 50 years, and this MOU demonstrates our continued dedication to pursue cutting-edge solutions that can support the growing demand for electricity while transitioning towards a more sustainable energy future in Asia Pacific.”
DNV’s Energy Systems vice president and regional directorAsia Pacific Brice Le Gallo said that DNV is proud to use their well established advisory and hydrogen technical capabilities to provide quantitative risk assessment for this impactful project.
“We believe that ammoniafired power generation can be an important step on the path to a more sustainable energy future,”
Le Gallo added.
“This MOU offers us an exciting opportunity to share our extensive industry experience to support this important contribution to Singapore’s net zero and energy transition goals.”
Ammonia has a higher volumetric density than hydrogen, making it easier for storage and distribution.
It does not produce CO2 when fired and is an efficient hydrogen carrier. Its use as a fuel is a promising long-term energy solution for the transition to a zero-carbon energy value chain.
The MOU aims to draw up robust assessment guidelines to ensure the safety and sustainability of ammonia as a clean fuel, while maintaining high efficiency and low NOx emissions for use in a gas turbine system for power generation.
This agreement follows an announcement in August 2022 that Keppel Energy will develop Singapore’s first hydrogen-ready power plant in the Sakra sector of Jurong Island, constructed by a consortium comprising Mitsubishi Power Asia Pacific and Jurong Engineering.
A long-term service (LTS) contract for major maintenance of the turbine was also awarded to Mitsubishi Power.
Keppel New Energy additionally signed a MOU with MHI to carry out a feasibility study on the development of a 100 per cent ammonia-fueled power plant on a selected site in Singapore.
Together, by embarking on this MOU, Keppel, MHI and DNV are demonstrating their commitment to accelerate the decarbonisation of energy to create a pathway to a net zero future.