MAN Energy Solutions will lead a consortium seeking to develop a two-stroke, ammonia-fueled engine for maritime shipping, according to Innovation Fund Denmark, the Danish investment entity.
The consortium aims to specify and demonstrate an entire, marine-propulsion system that will pave the way for the first commercial order for an ammonia-fueled vessel. The group also includes Eltronic FuelTech, the Danish fuel-system supplier; the Technical University of Denmark (DTU); and DNV GL. The development of the engine is scheduled for 2024. Earlier this year, MAN Energy Solutions announced that it would have its first ammonia-ready engine available in 2024 as well as having an ammonia retrofit package by 2025.
As a marine fuel, ammonia has the potential to decarbonize the marine industry, the group said. The project aims to demonstrate at full-scale a large marine engine running on ammonia at MAN Energy Solutions test facility, Research Centre Copenhagen. The project comprises three main stages: Concept development and initial design of an ammonia engine; Design of an ammonia fuel-supply system; and Full-scale testing.
The consortium believes ammonia is interesting because it is an energy carrier that does not contain carbon, and whose combustion, therefore, does not produce CO2.
