The ship, two years in the making, has already received approval in principle from DNV and preliminary flag approval from the Norwegian Maritime Authority. 

Amon Offshore has been created to build, own and operate a fleet of ammonia-powered supply ships for the Norwegian Continental Shelf. The ships, due to be operational from 2025, have been developed to meet oil companies’ current and future offshore logistics needs, setting a new standard for North Sea PSVs – while drastically reducing emissions.

André Risholm, Founder & CEO of Amon Maritime, said, “This is the next generation. We are combining new technologies with future requirements, enabling capabilities only available for newbuildings. Our vessels will be carbon free, future proof, and holistically designed for ammonia fuel from the ground up.”

Ammonia fuel will be made available with a floating bunkering terminal at the selected supply base from affiliated company Azane Fuel Solutions, with fuel provided by project partner Yara Clean Ammonia.

The vessels will be managed by Amon Maritime’s in-house operation in Norway, Ula Ship Management. The company is a joint venture with Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement, the third largest ship manager in the World.

The Norwegian Government has stated in the Hurdal Platform that all PSVs on the Norwegian Continental Shelf shall release zero emissions by 2030. This requires approximately 80 new builds or significantly modified vessels to be delivered between 2025-2030, providing an opportunity for innovation and value creation in the maritime industry.

Kongsberg Maritime, the leading marine technology group and offshore ship designer, was chosen to design and deliver key technologies to the project.

Jørn Heltne, Vice President for Ship Design sales in Kongsberg Maritime, said, “These vessels will represent the next generation platform supply vessel (PSV) and Amon Maritime will set a new standard in the logistics in the segment with these new-buildings.”

The Amon PSV received approval in principle for gas-fuelled (ammonia) notation from DNV in March and in May, Norwegian Maritime Authorities issued its letter of preliminary assessment, marking the first preliminary flag approval for an ammonia-powered ship.

Arnstein Eknes, Segment Director, Special Ships at DNV, said, “Innovations like this, coupled with close collaboration between all stakeholders in the value chain, is key to accelerating maritime decarbonisation.”

Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) recently announced its first shipment of low-carbon ammonia was exported from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to Hamburg, the first low-carbon ammonia cargo to be shipped to Germany. The demonstration cargo was delivered to Aurubis, a provider of non-ferrous metals and one of the largest copper recyclers worldwide.

Low-carbon ammonia is the most promising at-scale hydrogen carrier and potential clean fuel for a wide range of applications, including transportation, power generation and industrial, including steel, cement, and fertiliser production.

But shipping is one of the hardest-to-abate industries when it comes to decarbonisation.

McKinsey analysis suggests that by 2030, an iron-ore bulk carrier that runs on green ammonia will still cost 65% more, in terms of the annualised end-to-end TCO, than an iron-ore bulk carrier that runs on fossil-heavy fuel oil. Most of the difference can be attributed to the higher cost of zero-carbon fuels such as green ammonia and green hydrogen.

Powering the containerisation market is no less challenging; ships on the main east-west routes burn through around 11m MT of fuel each year, accounting for around 3% of global emissions.

McKinsey adds the entire value chain, including cargo owners, fuel producers, and vessel operators, needs to unite, based on a shared commitment to zero-emission shipping.

“Policy makers can also consider various targeted changes that would encourage a transition to zero-emission shipping along particular corridors. If stakeholders agree on a credible, ambitious green-corridor plan and implement it together, the industry can contribute to the world’s progress toward net zero,” it concludes.