Emission reduction of 95%! The world's first ammonia-fueled commercial vessel completes its demonstration voyage

On March 28, Nippon Yusen Kaisha (NYK) announced that the world's first ammonia-fueled tugboat, Sakigake, has officially completed its demonstration voyage, achieving a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions of approximately 95%.

Sakigake was originally an LNG-powered tugboat owned by NYK's subsidiary, Shin-Nippon Kaiyosha, and had been operating in Tokyo Bay since its delivery in 2015. In 2023, NYK launched the conversion of this tugboat to ammonia fuel, with the conversion work undertaken by NYK's Keihin Dock's Oppama shipyard.

In August last year, the conversion of Sakigake was successfully completed, after which a three-month demonstration voyage was conducted to verify its decarbonization effect and operational safety as the world's first ammonia-fueled vessel.

It is understood that Sakigake has an overall length of 37.20 meters, a width of 10.20 meters, and a depth of 4.40 meters, with a gross tonnage of 272 tons and flying the Japanese flag. The conversion of this vessel is part of the Green Innovation Fund project launched by the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO), under the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), in October 2021, and was jointly undertaken by NYK, IHI Power Systems, and Nippon Kaiji Kyokai (ClassNK). NYK was responsible for ship design, equipment layout and installation, and regulatory compliance; IHI Power Systems was responsible for developing the ammonia fuel four-stroke engine; and ClassNK was responsible for the ship's safety assessment.

During the three-month demonstration voyage, Sakigake performed towing operations in Tokyo Bay. NYK and IHI Power Systems analyzed the ammonia fuel co-firing rate and greenhouse gas emission reduction rate during the vessel's operation. The results showed that a co-firing rate and reduction rate of over 90% were achieved across all main engine load ranges, reaching a maximum of approximately 95%.

NYK stated that this is the first time globally that the feasibility of ammonia as a next-generation marine fuel has been verified through actual operation. The company plans to continue using the vessel in Tokyo Bay to accumulate experience in the development and operation of ammonia-fueled vessels.

Meanwhile, NYK, in collaboration with Yanmar, IHI Power Systems, and Nihon Shipyard, is developing a 40,000 cubic meter ammonia-fueled liquid ammonia carrier. This vessel is scheduled for delivery in November 2026 and is also part of the NEDO Green Innovation Fund project.

The vessel will be built by Japan Marine United Corporation (JMU)'s Ariake Works. After delivery, the project team will evaluate the vessel's performance, including environmental performance and the practicality of the operation manual, through demonstration operation, and provide improvement suggestions to shipyards and equipment manufacturers.

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