Keppel-Greenko to evaluate a portfolio of solar and wind energy projects
Singapore’s Keppel Infrastructure Holdings Pte Ltd will import 250,000 ton per annum of low-carbon green ammonia from India for its new 600-MW plant which is scheduled to be operational from 2025.
This will be India’s first energy export as its renewable energy development plans gain momentum, reducing the import volume of costly crude oil and mitigating the CO2 impact on climate.
Keppel and India’s Greenko Group will work on the hydrogen supply contract under a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed on 25 Oct 2022.
The MoU is to jointly explore green ammonia and renewable energy opportunities to meet the growing demand for low carbon energy in India, Singapore and globally.
In addition, the hydrogen contract would progress along with the MoU, said Mahesh Kolli, President, Joint Managing Director and co-Founder of Greenko Group.
The partners elaborated on the MoU in a joint press release.
The MOU will see Keppel Infrastructure collaborate with Greenko, one of India’s leading renewable energy companies, to explore the feasibility of jointly developing a production facility which can produce at least 250,000 tonnes of green ammonia per year.
In addition, Keppel and Greenko will jointly identify and evaluate a portfolio of solar and wind energy projects, up to an installed capacity of approximately 1.3 GW, complemented by pumped hydro-storage, to power the green ammonia production facility.
Green ammonia is made with green hydrogen that comes from water electrolysis powered by renewable power.
As more countries journey towards net zero emissions to fight climate change, there is a growing interest internationally to use green ammonia as a direct feedstock for carbon-free energy generation, because when it is used as a fuel, green ammonia does not generate any CO2.
Green ammonia can also be used as a hydrogen carrier to provide green hydrogen solutions for hard to abate sectors like chemical and heavy industries. In addition, green ammonia may be used to replace bunker fuels to decarbonise the global maritime industry.
The International Energy Agency recognised ammonia – along with hydrogen – as an important fuel for future electricity generation.
Keppel Infrastructure CEO Cindy Lim said after signing the MoU, “Green ammonia, as a carbon-free fuel, and an energy storage medium, as well as a transportation vector for hydrogen, has the potential to play a pivotal role in the decarbonisation of the energy and heavy industry sectors.
“This MOU with Greenko further underlines Keppel’s strategy to be at the forefront of providing innovative, sustainable energy solutions to help the world combat climate change.
“As part of the Keppel Group, which offers solutions for sustainable urbanisation, Keppel Infrastructure possesses a strong track record of developing and operating large-scale infrastructure projects.
“We look forward to working closely with our eco-system partners as we pursue scalable opportunities across the green ammonia supply chain and the related infrastructure, from production to transportation and delivery, including bunkering.
“This is in line with Keppel’s Vision 2030, which places sustainability at the core of the Group’s strategy.”
The collaboration between Keppel Infrastructure and Greenko is set to support India’s goal to manufacture five million tonnes of green hydrogen per annum by 2030 and become a production and export hub for the fuel.
Commenting on the partnership, Anil Kumar Chalamalasetty, CEO and Managing Director at Greenko, said, “As the global energy transition efforts leveraging green hydrogen and derivatives gain speed, we are committed to combating climate change, establishing the country as a reliable, sustainable source of the lowest cost green molecules and to catalyse India’s and the world’s decarbonisation.
“The transformation of India from a carbon-based fossil energy importer to an exporter of renewable energy-derived products like green hydrogen, green ammonia, and other green molecules, is the cornerstone of Greenko’ s strategy for future growth.
“Along with Greenko’s Intelligent Renewable Energy Storage Platform (IRESP) and foray into electrolyser manufacturing, partnerships like these with Keppel are key enabling aspects in an accelerated execution of this vision,” said Kumar who signed the MoU for Greenko.
Keppel Infrastructure is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Keppel Corporation, a Singapore flagship multinational company providing solutions for sustainable urbanisation.
Greenko Group, India’s leading Energy Transition company, has an installed capacity of 7.5 GW across solar, wind and hydro assets spread over ~100+ projects across 15 states and delivers 20+ Billion units of renewable energy annually, constituting ~1.5-2% of India’s total electricity consumption. fiinews.com
