Alfa Laval Inks Deal for Ammonia Fuel Supply System

Alfa Laval has signed its first contract for the ammonia fuel supply system, FCM Ammonia.

The FCM Ammonia will be installed on a CSSC Huangpu Wenchong shipyard in China for ship owner Tianjin Southwest Maritime (TSM). The installation will commence with three 25,000-cu. m. vessels, followed by four 41,000 cu. m. vessels.

The FCM Ammonia contract follows testing and development conducted in close collaboration with WinGD. In December 2024, testing of the full fuel supply system, fuel valve train, and vent treatment system commenced at WinGD’s Engine & Research Innovation Center (ERIC) in Winterthur, Switzerland. These tests, using test benches delivered by Alfa Laval Monza, will first validate key components for the vent treatment system, also called the ammonia release mitigation system, and then secure control logic and performance at varying engine loads.

CSSC Huangpu Wenchong shipyard in China. Credit: Alfa Laval

The research and development project with WinGD for testing FCM Ammonia has laid a foundation for its commercial adoption. This is further evidenced by K Shipbuilding receiving Approval in Principle (AIP) from ABS in December 2024 for the design of an ammonia dual-fuel MR1 tanker. The project, a collaboration between South Korea’s shipbuilder K Shipbuilding (KSB), Alfa Laval, WinGD, and the classification society American Bureau of Shipping (ABS), saw Alfa Laval contribute to the design of the entire fuel system, including the ammonia fuel supply system, fuel valves train, and vent treatment system. Alfa Laval also added an Aalborg ammonia dual-fuel boiler system to the project scope. This achievement marks the first instance of a combined vent treatment system incorporating both a water absorber and burning.

The first FCM Ammonia unit for TSM is scheduled for delivery at the end of 2025.