JERA Co., Inc. has executed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for potential collaboration for the joint project development and sales & purchase of clean ammonia with Yara Clean Ammonia Norge AS (YCA), which is a subsidiary of Yara International ASA.

Under the MOU, JERA and YCA have agreed to jointly study the viability to collaborate in the following areas:

• The sales and purchase of clean ammonia for the 20% co-firing operations at the Hekinan Thermal Power Plant Unit 4 in Japan, which is targeted to commence in 2027. The required volume is expected to be up to 500,000 MMtpy.
• The joint development of a 1 MMtpy plus blue ammonia project which YCA is considering developing in the U.S. Gulf Coast.

Yara, based in Norway, is one of the world’s largest producers of ammonia, a global leader in ammonia sales and shipping, and actively working to decarbonize the ammonia production process.

The execution of this MOU is the result of the tender process for the procurement of clean ammonia which JERA has commenced on 18th February 2022.

Through this process, JERA has discussed with various companies to compare and evaluate them to determine the potential partners with which it will cooperate in sourcing the clean ammonia for the world’s first commercial scale ammonia co-firing operations.

JERA Corporate Vice President Yukio Kani said, “We are pleased to work together with Yara on this significant journey towards decarbonizing the industry, and I am confident that Yara will take an important role in establishing a new clean fuel ammonia value chain which JERA seeks, through its experience in the operation throughout the ammonia supply chain from the production to transportation and storage in the existing market. JERA will continue its own efforts as well as to take hands with our partners in pursuit of our endeavor to realize and accelerate not only the decarbonization of the Japanese energy industry but also to solve the energy-related issues that the world is facing.”

Yara President and CEO Svein Tore Holsether, said, “I’m very pleased that JERA and Yara are signing a MOU for the joint project development, sales and purchase of clean ammonia. Yara has the capacity to produce and ship clean ammonia all over the world and we are a reliable, safe and long-term supplier. We are highly committed to this partnership and look forward to join forces with JERA to drive the transformation to a net zero world.”

JERA will continue to contribute to energy industry decarbonization through its own proactive efforts to develop decarbonization technologies while ensuring economic rationality. Additionally, JERA will also work to establish and expand the supply chain for clean fuels such as ammonia by expanding their commercial flow through various ways, including cooperation with Japanese power utilities, that contribute to the safe and stable supply of fuel ammonia.