Enova funds ammonia-powered Höegh PCTCs

Höegh Autoliners ASA has secured grants of almost USD 14 million for two Aurora-class pure car truck carriers (PCTCs) which will use ammonia as fuel. The Oslo-based shipping company, which has a target of achieving net-zero emissions by 2040, has a total of twelve PCTCs on order. The funding comes from Enova, which is owned by Norway’s Ministry of Climate and Environment.

With a capacity of 9,100 CEU, the Aurora-class vessels will be the world’s largest and most sustainable vehicle carriers ever built, Höegh said. All of the ships are designed to use LNG and low-sulphur oil as fuel but they also have the ‘ammonia-ready’ certification from DNV.

Two of them will now be adapted to run on ammonia. Work will include the installation of ammonia engines, the first four two-stroke units to be produced by MAN Energy Solutions. Additional storage for fuel will also be needed to ensure sufficient range, Höegh explained. The Enova funding will help to offset the additional cost of upgrading the ships’ ammonia-ready specifications.

Höegh is hoping to be able to use ammonia as fuel from the time that the ships are commissioned. However, it could take some time before availability and price reach satisfactory levels, the company said, with a gradual ramp-up expected from 2027.

Andreas Enger, Höegh Autoliners’ CEO, said: “At Höegh Autoliners, we take leadership by actively collaborating with a wide range of highly qualified and dedicated suppliers to make clean ammonia viable as a zero-emission shipping fuel. We believe it is important for shipping companies to send a clear signal to the rest of the value chain that the technology can be realised in a short time and that there will be demand for carbon-neutral fuel. Almost all Höegh Autoliners vessels sail under the Norwegian flag and have significant Norwegian content from the Norwegian cluster.

Enger said that the Enova support, combined with the ships’ innovative multi-fuel design, will help to de-risk the project. However, he stressed the need for pioneering companies to take decisive steps to shape the future, commenting that the race towards decarbonising the industry will take decades, not years.