CF Industries and South Korean producer Lotte Chemical have signed an agreement to explore a joint US-based clean ammonia project, the US firm said late on Monday.
The memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the two companies will also include long-term ammonia offtake into South Korea, CF Industries said in a statement.
“The MOU establishes a framework for the companies to assess the joint development of and investment in a greenfield clean ammonia production facility in the US, including at CF Industries’ Blue Point Complex in Louisiana,” it said.
“The companies believe that the US offers considerable advantages for clean ammonia production, including access to plentiful and low-cost natural gas, the regulatory and legal framework in place, and the geology suitable for permanent carbon sequestration,” it said.
The prospective ammonia facility would leverage carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) technologies to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from the ammonia production process to a level that meets or exceeds South Korea’s clean ammonia requirements.
The two firms will also quantify expected clean ammonia demand in South Korea for power generation, bunkering and other sectors, taking into account regulatory and policy requirements as well as safety and environmental considerations.
“This workstream will confirm the scale of long-term offtake volume expectations for a potential clean ammonia facility,” CF Industries said.
Lotte Chem has established a plan to produce and sell 1.2m tonnes of clean hydrogen by investing a total of South Korean won (W) 6tr ($4.3bn) by 2030.
Clean ammonia (NH3) is seen as a safe and efficient hydrogen carrier and storage mechanism.
CF Industries is constructing a CO2 dehydration and compression facility to enable the capture and permanent sequestration of up to 2m tonnes of CO2 per year, starting in 2025.
The company has also commenced a front-end engineering and design (FEED) study to construct a greenfield clean ammonia facility utilising CCS at its Blue Point Complex in Louisiana.
CF Industries is also constructing North America’s first commercial scale green ammonia capacity at its Donaldsonville complex, enabling up to 20,000 tonnes of green ammonia production beginning in 2024.
