HOUSTON & DUSSELDORF, Germany--(BUSINESS WIRE)--JERA & Uniper are collaborating to facilitate the development of the initial production of 2 MTPA of clean ammonia with expansion potential up to 8 MTPA, to greatly accelerate the production and supply of zero-carbon fuels from the US for use in the US, Europe, Japan, and greater Asia. The proposed facility on the US Gulf Coast, developed by JERA Americas and ConocoPhillips, aims to produce hydrogen and convert it into clean ammonia to be supplied to JERA and Uniper under long-term sale and purchase agreements, with Europe as the primary initial export market, with Uniper targeting about 1 MTPA of green ammonia from all sources by the end of the decade.
A project engineering study will be completed by year end to develop the first phase of this landmark project which will assess green and blue hydrogen opportunities. It is expected to reach commercial operation in the late 2020s including a complete certified CCS program.
Both companies are working jointly to optimize their LNG portfolio. As a result, Uniper will be able to supply additional LNG to Germany and JERA to Japan and beyond.
Steven Winn, Chief Executive Officer of JERA Americas Inc. based in Houston said, “JERA is committed to providing cutting edge solutions to the world’s energy issues and is actively working to establish both the ammonia and hydrogen value chains. The combination of a skilled workforce, plentiful natural gas, abundant renewable resources, deep-water ports, and ideal CCS geology make the US Gulf Coast uniquely advantaged to produce the low carbon fuel to enable the Atlantic and Pacific energy markets transition. JERA and ConocoPhillips will be a low-cost ammonia supplier to domestic and international markets. We believe this project offers a unique opportunity to support Germany’s decarbonization efforts while advancing ammonia technology development for hydrogen distribution and industrial decarbonization.”
Yukio Kani, JERA Corporate Vice President, Managing Executive Officer of JERA Inc. headquartered in Tokyo, added, “JERA is working in markets around the world with our business partners to deliver cleaner energy supply and power generation solutions. JERA’s advanced technologies to meet its commitments as a low carbon fuel supplier and end user, together with ConocoPhillips’ low carbon innovation and Uniper’s proven low carbon technologies would support the energy evolution in the US, Europe, Japan and Asia. We also see this collaboration as a positive step to help Europe, Germany and other users during this time of crisis with new low carbon energy supplies coming from the US.”
Niek Den Hollander, Uniper SE, Chief Commercial Officer said, “We are very excited to partner with JERA on this landmark and timely initiative. Our collective goal is to jointly develop and deliver material LNG supply in the very near term and US sourced green and blue hydrogen to Europe to support our longer-term values and goals. Uniper’s key role in meeting the urgent need for alternative gas and clean fuel supply is complemented by JERA and Uniper’s combined global clean energy expertise and technical development capabilities, allowing collaboration between two of the world’s leading energy security and transition companies to accelerate the meeting of Europe’s needs and goals.”
Marc Merrill, President and CEO of Uniper North America added, “I do not think we can underscore enough the importance of continued strong global relationships, particularly at this extraordinary time for both energy security and the energy transition. Uniper North America highly values this opportunity to work closely with JERA Americas on core US infrastructure projects delivering both LNG and hydrogen.”
About JERA
Established in 2015, JERA is an equal joint venture of two major Japanese electric companies, TEPCO Fuel & Power Incorporated and Chubu Electric Power Company and produces about 30% of all electricity in Japan. JERA is an energy company with global reach that has strength in the entire energy supply chain, from participation in LNG upstream projects and fuel procurement, through fuel transportation to power generation. JERA, which stands for Japan’s Energy for a New Era, is committed to achieving net zero CO2 emissions from its domestic and overseas businesses by 2050 and is supporting an energy transition in an environmentally and socially responsible manner. For more details: https://www.jera.co.jp/english/
About Uniper
Uniper is a leading international energy company, has around 11,500 employees, and operates in more than 40 countries. The company plans for its power generation business in Europe to be carbon-neutral by 2035. Uniper’s roughly 33 GW of installed generation capacity make it one of the world's largest electricity producers. The company's core activities include power generation in Europe and Russia as well as global energy trading and a broad gas portfolio, which makes Uniper one of Europe’s leading gas companies. In addition, Uniper is a reliable partner for communities, municipal utilities, and industrial enterprises for planning and implementing innovative, lower-carbon solutions on their decarbonization journey. Uniper is a hydrogen pioneer, is active worldwide along the entire hydrogen value chain, and is conducting projects to make hydrogen a mainstay of the energy supply.
The company is based in Düsseldorf. Together with its main shareholder Fortum, Uniper is also Europe’s third-largest producer of zero-carbon energy.
