China, Singapore jointly develop ammonia-fuelled carrier

China Classification Society (CCS), Singapore’s SDTR Marine (SDTR) and Shanghai’s Merchant Ship Design & Research Institute (SDARI) have jointly developed an 85,000dwt ammonia-fuelled bulk carrier, CCS said on February 22.

The vessel, which is supposedly the world’s first, was issued an approval in principle (AIP) from the Chinese classification society during a cloud certification ceremony.

SDTR, SDARI and CCS last year set up a joint development project team. SDTR provided the operational data, essential for development, SDARI conducted the design, and CCS provided the support and reviews.

Gao Dehui, CEO of SDTR, said that the 85,000dwt ammonia-fuelled bulk carrier project is a milestone for the company's green and sustainability policy.  

Ammonia is regarded as the next-generation green fuel and has attracted much attention from the maritime industry.