Ireland plans to build Europe’s first ammonia-fueled power plant

Two energy companies, Centrica and Mitsubishi Power, announced their intentions of exploring the development, construction and operation of Europe’s first ammonia-fueled power plant by signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in late November.

Furthermore, the site of interest is Bord Gáis Energy’s Whitegate Combined Cycle Gas Turbine power facility in Cork, Ireland, which consists of two gas turbines that can also be switched to run on ammonia.

As for ammonia, there are several factors that make it an attractive source of energy. First of all, ammonia as a material comprises of hydrogen and nitrogen, while it produces no greenhouse gas emissions at point of use.

Additionally, ammonia has a higher volumetric density than hydrogen, which makes its storage and transport more efficient.

Now, when it comes to ammonia production, its two components, nitrogen and hydrogen, can be derived from the air and water respectively.

However, sourcing these materials and creating ammonia requires energy, while namely 100 kWh worth of electricity ammonia would have a power output of 11 kWh to 19 kWh if combusted.

Hence, the project aims mainly at the technology’s research and development, and the low carbon ammonia used is likely to be coming from abroad.

Finally, it is worth noting that the world’s first power plant to run on ammonia was established in Singapore in 2022.