Global Green Ammonia Market - 2022-2029

Market Overview

The global green ammonia market size was worth US$ XX million in 2021 and is estimated to reach US$ XX million by 2029, growing at a CAGR of XX % during the forecast period (2022-2029).

Ammonia is a poisonous gas that is commonly employed in agricultural fertilizer production. Green ammonia production is the manufacture of ammonia that is entirely sustainable and carbon-free. Using hydrogen from water electrolysis and nitrogen extracted from the air is one method of green ammonia production. It is then put into the Haber process, wholly powered by renewable energy. The process produces ammonia, NH3, by combining hydrogen and nitrogen at high temperatures and pressures.

On the other hand, ammonia production is currently not a "green" process. It's usually manufactured from methane, water and air, with the hydrogen produced using steam methane reforming (SMR) and the Haber process. The SMR method produces around 90% of the carbon dioxide produced. The method consumes a significant amount of energy and emits approximately 1.8 % of the world's carbon dioxide.

Market Dynamics

The need for renewable energy storage in the form of hydrogen has risen dramatically due to the growing adoption of renewable energy-producing systems worldwide. As a result, several green ammonia initiatives have been started because it is the best hydrogen ion vector. However, the expensive capital expenditure on ammonia facilities may operate as a stumbling block to market expansion.

Long-term demand for renewable energy

In terms of capacity addition, renewable energy generation exceeds fossil fuel power generation. Global renewable capacity reached 2.79 terawatts (TW) by 2020, up 10.3 percent from the previous year. As per the International Renewable Energy Agency, solar and wind are high-potential renewable energy sources and are expected to dominate the renewable energy sector in the future years.

Solar and wind energy have grown faster than other renewable energy sources, rising investment and lower power generation costs. As a result, increased renewable energy storage systems needs will move the green ammonia sector forward.

Green ammonia as a maritime fuel

The shipping industry accounts for 3% of global greenhouse gas emissions, owing to the high diesel consumption and high sulfur fuel for ships. Heavy fuel oil is ships' most common bunker oil, obtained as a leftover from crude oil distillation. When oil with high sulfur content is burned in a ship engine, toxic SOx is released into the sky.

The marine industry, on the other hand, is undergoing a transition. The marine industry has been challenged to cut emissions using cleaner energy sources. The sulfur limit in transportation oil used on board ships operating outside designated emission control areas has been cut to 0.5 percent m/m under the International Maritime Organization (IMO) 2020 standards (mass by mass). It will shift toward higher-quality marine fuels, opening up prospects in the green ammonia industry.

High capital investment

The high capital-intensive nature of green ammonia plants is now the most significant impediment to the market's expansion. The cost of green ammonia plants is 1.5 times that of natural gas-based ammonia plants. For about 75 percent of the plant's operating costs, natural gas or coal is the major operating cost in ammonia manufacturing. Ammonia has a lower energy density than LNG and the fuel element of the shipping charges is higher due to the high cost of green ammonia. The two variables account for the higher shipping charges of ammonia relative to LNG, slowing the market expansion.

COVID-19 Impact Analysis

In late March 2020, as COVID-19 began closing non-essential enterprises and borders, numerous packaging companies created industry surveys to provide meaningful measures regarding the impact of COVID-19 on chemical makers, material suppliers and machinery manufacturers.

Industries deemed critical were operating at capacity levels of up to 95%. As companies adopt sustainability measures, demand for green ammonia in transportation, power generation and industrial feedstock will likely rise following the COVID-19 crisis.

Segment Analysis

By end-user, the green ammonia market is segmented into transportation, power generation and industrial feedstock.

Rising use of ammonia in power generation

The rising need for energy in many end-use sectors is largely responsible for the segment's rise. Renewable energy can be captured and reused for generating power at green ammonia production sites. It will improve the efficiency and long-term viability of renewable energy generation. Combined with natural gas or hydrogen, ammonia can also be burned directly in gas turbines. If ammonia is imported as a hydrogen carrier, burning it directly could prevent the need for ammonia cracking (which is required to convert it back to hydrogen), eliminating an energy-intensive step in the process.

Ammonia also takes up less space in the storage tank than hydrogen. Ammonia is also less reactive than hydrogen, burning at a lower temperature with a slower flame and a limited flammability range. While ammonia fire presents a flame stability difficulty, it is less than hydrogen, with NOx abatement remaining the primary concern. However, as previously stated, NOx abatement using well-proven selective catalytic reduction systems is already being employed successfully in several nations' stationary NOx emitters, such as power plants.

Several businesses are working on engines and turbines that use ammonia as fuel. Mitsubishi, for example, is working on a gas turbine that can run on ammonia as a fuel. Thermal cracking of ammonia produces hydrogen, nitrogen and trace amounts of ammonia, utilized as a fuel in gas turbines.

Geographical Analysis

The presence of green hydrogen projects in Europe

In the global market, Europe is expected to have a large share. The existence of green hydrogen projects around the region is primarily driving the region's growth. The green ammonia market in the region is expected to increase due to a rising number of fuel cell projects and government initiatives to deploy fuel cells in the residential and commercial sectors.

Furthermore, the rapid adoption of electric vehicles in this region is likely to raise the market for fuel cells, which would boost the market for green ammonia. A crucial aspect driving the region's green ammonia market is the increased preference for sustainable energy sources for power generation and transportation fuel.

Furthermore, significant market participants across the region and their contributions to creating new production plants are a major contributor to the region's high market share. For example, Haldor Topsoe declared in March 2021 that it would produce green ammonia for naval fuel in Germany. Aquamarine Investment Partners, a private capital manager, is leading the project. They signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Haldor Topsoe, a Danish company working on multiple initiatives to produce green hydrogen, ammonia, eMethanol and green fuels.

Competitive Landscape

Companies in the green ammonia market continue to invest in R&D to develop the production of technologically advanced green ammonia. Mergers and acquisitions, geographical growth, increased production capacity, partnerships and collaborations are important methods used by market participants to stay competitive.

Major global Green Ammonia market companies include: ThyssenKrupp, Siemens Energy, Man Energy Solutions, Nel Hydrogen, Green Hydrogen Systems, ITM Power, Mcphy Energy, Hydrogenics, Star Fire Energy and AquaHydrex.

ITM Power

• Overview: ITM Power has focused on making electrolyzer systems that create green hydrogen using proton exchange membrane (PEM) technology for the past two decades. To increase the effect, industrial reach and market penetration, the company collaborates strategically with Linde, Shell, Snam, Hyundai and Honda. ITM Power follows ISO 14001 2015 and OHSAS 18001 2007 in its management systems.

• Product Portfolio: The company is a significant supplier of renewable-energy-powered electrolyzers and it employs the industry's leading PEM technology to produce the cleanest form of products. PEM electrolyzers can be used to manufacture ammonia sustainably, helping to decouple production from fossil fuels.

• Key Development: ITM Power has announced that it has sold a 24MW electrolyzer to Linde Engineering. The electrolyzer will be erected at a Yara Norge AS ("Yara") plant in Herya, near Porsgrunn, about 140 kilometers southwest of Oslo. The facility is about 1.5 square kilometers and is Norway's largest industrial site. Every year, the Porsgrunn site generates 3 million tonnes of fertilizer. SMR presently provides the hydrogen required for ammonia synthesis.

Why Purchase the Report?

• Visualize the composition of the green ammonia market segmentation by technology, end-user and region, highlighting the critical commercial assets and players.

• Identify commercial opportunities in the green ammonia market by analyzing trends and co-development deals.

• Excel data sheet with thousands of green ammonia market-level 4/5 segmentation points.

• Pdf report with the most relevant analysis cogently put together after exhaustive qualitative interviews and in-depth market study.

• Product mapping in excel for the key product of all major market players

The global green ammonia market report would provide access to an approx. 53 market data table, 42 figures and 197 pages.

Target Audience 2022

• Green Ammonia Service Providers/ Buyers
• Industry Investors/Investment Bankers
• Education & Research Institutes
• Emerging Companies
• Green Ammonia Manufacturers