Jera has agreed to book two gas carriers from Mitsui OSK Lines that will enable Japan¡¯s largest power producer to transport low-carbon ammonia from the U.S. and build up a supply chain for the alternative fuel.
MOL, one of the world¡¯s largest shipping companies, said the vessels will move the fuel from the Blue Point project in Louisiana to Jera¡¯s thermal power station in the city of Hekinan, in Aichi Prefecture. Shipments will begin around Japan¡¯s 2029 fiscal year.
The contract ¡°marks a major step forward in MOL¡¯s initiative to develop a marine transport system for low-carbon ammonia,¡± the company said in a statement Thursday, adding that it had been in discussions with Jera on transport of the fuel since November 2022.
Low-carbon ammonia has been receiving greater attention around the world as governments and companies pledge to reduce emissions from fossil fuels. Japan has been promoting a technology known as ammonia co-firing, where a portion of the coal used by power plants is replaced to curb emissions of climate-warming gases.
In recent years, the country has offered to help other nations curb emissions through the use of co-firing technology. Japanese trading house Marubeni last year signed a deal with Exxon Mobil to take about 250,000 tons of the fuel a year once a project in Baytown, Texas, is up and running.
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