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NH3 for the Open Sea? Baker Hughes, Hanwha Ocean Testing Ammonia to Fuel Vessels

Feb. 4, 2025

The new ammonia turbine will not only be used for marine applications but also for onshore and offshore applications, as well as for electric generation and mechanical drive.

Rod Walton, EnergyTech Managing Editor

Gas turbine technology firm Baker Hughes will partner with shipbuilder Hanwha Ocean and Hanwha Power Systems on delivering ammonia combustion systems to smaller vessels and offshore energy facilities.

The project will utilize Baker Hughes’ small-size gas turbine technology and Hanwha’s ammonia combustion system. The new ammonia turbine will not only be used for marine applications but also for onshore and offshore applications, as well as for electric generation and mechanical drive.

Hanwha Ocean could adopt the new solution as a propulsion system for their future vessels, thus enabling maritime decarbonization. Ammonia, also known by the chemical symbol NH3, is a gas primarily used in fertilizers, but it does not contain carbon in its chain and is combustible.

“Decarbonizing hard-to-abate industries and transportation is one of the most pressing but high-potential opportunities of our time,” said Alessandro Bresciani, senior vice president of Climate Technology Solutions at Baker Hughes, known primarily for its oilfield services work. “We believe fuel switching to ammonia will play a key role in achieving significant emissions reductions across these sectors, and to realize this ambition, the industry needs more partnerships such as this.”

While Baker Hughes completed its initial turbine feasibility studies in 2024, Hanwha has tested a proof-of-concept of the combustor, with 100 percent ammonia as the fuel gas. The two companies intend to complete the full engine test with ammonia by the end of 2027, after which the turbine (~16 MW power range) will be commercially available for orders.

Currently, Baker Hughes is exploring its small-size gas turbines to accelerate the transition from diesel motors to turbines powered by ammonia and hydrogen.

Last year, the American Bureau of Shipping, Sumitomo Corp. and other organizations signed a memorandum of understanding to develop a feasibility study on using green carbon-free ammonia for ship-to-ship refueling at major ports along the U.S. West Coast.

Many global shipping companies are working on developing ammonia as an alternative fuel for vessels. Some research indicates that ammonia, while not as energy dense as diesel, might be valuable as a decarbonizing fuel in such technology as solid oxide fuel cells.

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About the Author

Rod Walton, EnergyTech Managing Editor | Senior Editor

For EnergyTech editorial inquiries, please contact Managing Editor Rod Walton at [email protected].

Rod Walton has spent 15 years covering the energy industry as a newspaper and trade journalist. He formerly was energy writer and business editor at the Tulsa World. Later, he spent six years covering the electricity power sector for Pennwell and Clarion Events. He joined Endeavor and EnergyTech in November 2021.

Walton earned his Bachelors degree in journalism from the University of Oklahoma. His career stops include the Moore American, Bartlesville Examiner-Enterprise, Wagoner Tribune and Tulsa World.

EnergyTech is focused on the mission critical and large-scale energy users and their sustainability and resiliency goals. These include the commercial and industrial sectors, as well as the military, universities, data centers and microgrids. The C&I sectors together account for close to 30 percent of greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S.

He was named Managing Editor for Microgrid Knowledge and EnergyTech starting July 1, 2023

Many large-scale energy users such as Fortune 500 companies, and mission-critical users such as military bases, universities, healthcare facilities, public safety and data centers, shifting their energy priorities to reach net-zero carbon goals within the coming decades. These include plans for renewable energy power purchase agreements, but also on-site resiliency projects such as microgrids, combined heat and power, rooftop solar, energy storage, digitalization and building efficiency upgrades.