Tugboat Powered By Ammonia Sails For The First Time

A tugboat powered by ammonia successfully sailed for the first time on a tributary of the Hudson River, demonstrating the maritime industry's potential to drastically cut carbon dioxide emissions, Jennifer McDermott and Michael Hill reported for the Associated Press (AP).

Originally running on diesel fuel, the 67-year-old tugboat was retrofitted by New York-based startup Amogy to run on cleanly-produced ammonia, a new, carbon-free fuel. I Photo: Amogy

Originally running on diesel fuel, the 67-year-old tugboat was retrofitted by New York-based startup Amogy to run on cleanly-produced ammonia, a new, carbon-free fuel. This maiden voyage marks a significant step in the race to develop zero-emissions propulsion systems using renewable fuel sources.

Shipping emissions have risen over the past decade, now accounting for about 3% of global emissions, according to the UN, as larger vessels transport increasing amounts of cargo using fuel oil.

Amogy’s CEO Seonghoon Woo founded the company with three friends from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to address what he called a "huge, pressing concern."

The maritime sector, he noted, has yet to transition to clean energy, posing a significant challenge to sustainability.

"This is not the next generation's problem; it's a big problem for our generation," Woo emphasized. Launched in 2020, Amogy's name is a combination of "ammonia" and "energy."