Iberdrola will build the first green ammonia plant

2023-06-09 22:27:03

Iberdrola will build the first plant of green ammonia which will be viable thanks to European funds and will involve an investment of 750 million euros, the company has reported, which has not yet detailed the country of location.

The operation is part of the framework agreement signed by the energy company with We drewthe world’s largest maritime marketer and distributor of anhydrous ammonia, which represents the largest green ammonia framework agreement in Europe to date for the sale of up to 100,000 tons of green ammonia per year from 2026.

Iberdrola is currently developing ammonia plants and green methanol in Europe, the United States, Australia and other countries and this first plant means consolidating a global growth strategy in green hydrogen and its derivative products.

The construction of the first green ammonia plant will generate up to 3,500 jobsoccupied mostly by local workers. In addition, during its operation and maintenance phase the project will create more than 50 jobs.

The green ammonia plant will be linked to the construction of 500 megawatts (MW) of new renewable energies, since green ammonia will meet all the requirements demanded by Europe.

In addition, it will contribute to creation of industrial opportunities and innovation in a growing market, with a high export component, explains Iberdrola.

The plant’s green ammonia production will be bought and sold by Trammo to decarbonise various heavy energy-intensive industries across the continent, such as Netherlands, Germany or France.

European green hydrogen corridor

This project aims to launch the European green hydrogen corridor. Southern Europe has great renewable potential that allows it to supply competitive green energy for decarbonise heavy industry high energy consumption that is difficult to reduce by its European partners.

“When you bring together one of the world’s largest renewable energy developers and the world’s largest maritime trader of anhydrous ammonia, innovative projects like this can quickly become viable. For a year now, we have been operating the largest green hydrogen plant in Europe, what gives us the experience and understanding of processes and technology to scale quickly to these larger-scale projects” says Millán Garcia-Tola, Global Director of Green Hydrogen at Iberdrola.

“Reducing the emissions of the industry linked to green ammonia is a challenge for the coming years in which Iberdrola wants to get involved with real projects to develop a more sustainable production chain and achieve decarbonization targets. We are already in talks with Trammo to see similar projects in other markets,” added García-Tola.

Green ammonia can be used in decarbonization of existing applications, such as fertilizer production or the chemical industries.

In addition, tremendous market growth is anticipated in new uses for this product, for example, as marine fuel or to make the transport of green hydrogen viable.

Saving water

This last use is essential for saving water, since green hydrogen allows reduce water consumption by more than 40% employee regarding a gray ammonia plant.

Iberdrola, with 40 gigawatts (GW) of renewable energy installed worldwide, has the ambition of doubling its current portfolio to 80 GW and 2030.

The company became a pioneer in the production of green hydrogen with three plants in operation by 2023 and the largest electrolyser in Europe (20 MW) at its Puertollano plant in Spain.

Iberdrola is developing more than 60 hydrogen projects in 8 countriesincluding green ammonia and green methanol in geographies such as Iberia, the United States or Australia.

As the world’s largest maritime trader with a leading global position in the commercialization and distribution of anhydrous ammonia since 1965, Trammo plays an active role in the transition to decarbonise the industrial sector, helping to make significant volumes of green ammonia available on the market by 2035.