Ammonia-Fueled Vessel Completes Propulsion Trials in Singapore

Australian metals company Fortescue, in collaboration with the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) and other partners, has completed propulsion and manoeuvrability trials of its ammonia-fueled vessel, the Fortescue Green Pioneer, in the Port of Singapore.

The trials used liquid ammonia, diesel, and Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil as marine fuel, and followed the world’s first dual-fueled ammonia fuel trial conducted by the same vessel in March 2024, which earned the vessel the “Gas Fuelled Ammonia” notation from classification society DNV and approval from the Singapore Registry of Ships (SRS). The first series of fuel trials, conducted at anchor over seven weeks, tested the vessel’s ammonia storage systems, associated piping, gas fuel delivery system, retrofitted engines, and seaworthiness using five cubic metres of liquid ammonia.

The recent trials included tests to verify nitrogen-based emissions management and the engine’s ability to operate on varying amounts of biofuel in combination with ammonia. The Fortescue Green Pioneer used 6.4 cubic meters of liquid ammonia loaded at Singapore’s Vopak Banyan Terminal on Jurong Island, alongside diesel and HVO, over a ten-day period ending on May 2.

“In the coming months, the Fortescue Green Pioneer is expected to play a key role in driving awareness of the need for the global shipping industry to adopt solutions such as green ammonia,” Fortescue said in a statement.

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