SwitcH2 has announced a partnership with CorPower Ocean to develop a floating green ammonia production facility that will partially utilize wave energy. The project aims to deliver industrial-scale offshore green hydrogen and ammonia using a mix of renewable sources, including wind, solar, and now wave power.
Backed by Norway’s BW Offshore and Dutch Oceans Capital, SwitcH2 is adapting proven floating production, storage, and offloading (FPSO) technologies for the production of green ammonia. The new facility will incorporate CorPower Ocean’s wave energy technology to enhance the reliability of its renewable power supply.
The initiative is supported by the Dutch Government’s GroenvermogenNL TSE program. SwitcH2 plans to launch an open-sea project in northern Portugal, leveraging CorPower Ocean’s wave energy technology to boost renewable power stability.
SwitcH2’s floating ammonia unit will feature a vessel comparable in size to a Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC). It will support a 300 MW electrolysis plant, producing nearly 300,000 tons of green ammonia annually. This output could fuel multiple oceangoing vessels for an entire year, with production expected to begin by 2029.
Saskia Kunst, Director and Co-founder of SwitcH2, stated: “We are extremely pleased with our collaboration with CorPower Ocean as integrating their promising wave energy adds economic benefits to our already competitive offshore production system. Jointly, we look at a buoyant market for green ammonia which is set to expand six-fold between now and 2050. Our project will contribute to decarbonizing hard-to-abate sectors such as global shipping.”
The global green ammonia market, currently valued at $0.7 billion, is projected to reach $55 billion by 2032. With high energy density and easier storage, green ammonia is increasingly seen as a key fuel for decarbonizing global shipping, which accounts for about 3% of global emissions.
Kevin Rebenius, Commercial Director at CorPower Ocean, said: “Wave energy is one of the largest untapped energy sources in the world. It’s renewable, accessible, and abundant. Crucially, it’s also highly consistent, bringing greater stability to the clean energy mix and enabling 24/7 renewable electricity supply. We look forward to working with SwitcH2 with a shared vision for a cleaner, brighter future powered by renewables.”
SwitcH2 is also exploring additional projects beyond Portugal. These include initiatives in West Africa targeting ammonia exports to Northwestern Europe and projects in the Dutch North Sea focused on hydrogen production for the national hydrogen network. These projects support SwitcH2’s goal of reaching gigawatt-scale production capacity.
“A floating production system is by definition a mobile asset which we will build where this is cheapest and which can be deployed around the globe, wherever we have access to attractively priced wind, wave, and/or solar energy,” added Kunst.
CorPower Ocean recently secured €32 million in Series B1 funding, marking its largest investment to date. The funding will help accelerate wave energy development toward mainstream viability.
