Press Release: The Ammonia Report, produced by Carbon Neutral Consulting (CNC), brings a radically different perspective to this topic. It argues that ammonia may hold the key to a winning strategy for companies throughout the maritime sector.
“Globally, shipping discharges almost a billion tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere each year,” says Stephen Crolius, Co-Founder of Carbon-Neutral Consulting (CNC) and co-author of The Ammonia Report. “The IMO’s initial GHG strategy calls for a 50% reduction in the sector’s GHG emissions vs. a 2008 baseline. Yet, at this point in time, of a sample of 500 companies with hard assets at stake, just 20% have a clear decarbonization strategy. Companies have no time to lose in meeting this challenge.”
The Ammonia Report is not an endorsement of ammonia as a bunker fuel. Rather, it is an endorsement of strong strategic planning that can enable maritime companies to thrive through a multi-decade period of disruption. The report marshals cutting edge information from dozens of sources to put ammonia in context. It argues that ammonia’s presence within the decarbonization option set changes the strategic calculus in important ways. Companies who understand this, and build their business strategies accordingly, will have a competitive advantage over those who do not.
The Ammonia Report reflects decades of business strategy experience and unrivaled command of the ammonia energy concept. Co-Founder Trevor Brown now serves as Executive Director of the Ammonia Energy Association, following his pioneering work in the nascent field of low-carbon ammonia production.
“We saw the relevance of ammonia energy to the maritime sector even before the IMO outlined its initial strategy for reducing GHG emissions in 2018,” Crolius says. “Over the last three years we have had the opportunity to interact with companies in many different maritime industries and we have studied the key developments. We came to realize that the ammonia fuel concept could have far-reaching implications that maritime companies could use to their advantage.”
The Ammonia Report co-author Milton Bevington explains further: “In game theory, a ‘dominant strategy’ is a strategy that leaves you better off no matter what your competitors do in response. Dominant strategies are rare in business contexts because we’re usually faced with options that have an upside if our competitors react one way and a downside if they react in another. Right now, for companies in the maritime sector, an ammonia-oriented action plan comes very close to being this kind of ‘dominant strategy,’ a business plan that enables commercial success across a period of intense disruption regardless of the actions of your competitors. The critical question, which The Ammonia Report answers, is how can this strategy be rolled out via practical actions in the current environment?”
The 64-page report describes the business risks that flow from the International Maritime Organization’s most recent Sulphur and GHG emissions initiatives. It reviews the range of fuel choices through the lens of current and emerging regulatory initiatives, and identifies ammonia as a potentially well-qualified alternative. It then considers the degree of challenge involved in scaling ammonia up as a major maritime fuel. At its culmination, The Ammonia Report presents a business strategy for companies within the maritime sector and outlines steps for implementation.
“We have been impressed by the thoughtful approach taken by the maritime companies we’ve been speaking with,” Crolius says, “but the complex and rapidly evolving situation makes it hard to formulate a long-term plan. The Ammonia Report will serve as a springboard for the creation of a company-specific strategy and effective plan of action.”
Included in The Ammonia Report package is a low-carbon ammonia cost calculator. This tool will allow report buyers to delve into the economics of low-carbon ammonia production using their own assumptions. Subscribers who’d like further assistance developing their own cost scenarios will have access to our analysts during the initial 90 days of their subscription.
The Ammonia Report is for sale electronically at ammonia.report
