Green hydrogen-based ammonia

The production of ammonia using hydrogen derived from renewable sources, such as electrolysis of water powered by renewable energy.

Green hydrogen powered ammonia production facility using electrolysis and renewable energy sources

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Readiness Level

Priorities for scaling

catalysing developmentmoving the innovation from private to public hands

Green hydrogen-based ammonia refers to the production of ammonia using hydrogen derived from renewable sources, such as electrolysis of water powered by renewable energy. It replaces the traditional fossil-fuel derived hydrogen with this environmentally friendly source of hydrogen in the Haber-Bosch process, thereby reducing greenhouse gas emissions compared to traditional ammonia production methods and eliminating dependency on natural gas.

Food System Area

agricultural inputs & primary production practices

The overarching problem addressed by Green Hydrogen-Based Ammonia is the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and the decarbonization of the ammonia production process. More specifically, by utilizing renewable hydrogen, this innovation aims to mitigate the environmental impact associated with the use of fossil-fuel derived hydrogen in conventional ammonia production, which is a significant contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions. Synthetic fertilizer production, responsible for 1-2% of global GHG emissions, is a key focus for emission reduction.

Problem area

reducing agricultural footprint

What impact could it have?

Human health impact

low - medium

Green Hydrogen-Based Ammonia is expected to have low to medium health benefits, primarily through the reduction of air pollution and associated health risks resulting from the decarbonization of the ammonia production process.

Environmental impact

high

On the environmental front, the innovation holds the promise of substantial benefits. It directly reduces or eliminates greenhouse gas emissions in the Haber-Bosch process, significantly reducing the carbon footprint of agriculture and mitigating climate change. Indirect benefits may extend to biodiversity, water resources, and land resources, depending on the sustainability of the renewable energy sourcing and overall production process.

Livelihood impact

medium - high

This innovation can have medium to large livelihood benefits. It offers a sustainable and potentially cost-effective nitrogen source for plant nutrition, which can increase income and improve economic viability for farmers and agricultural stakeholders. Additionally, it contributes to improved food security by ensuring the availability of environmentally friendly fertilizers for crop production.

Socio-cultural impact

medium

Socio-cultural impacts may vary by context, with possible social acceptability constraints related to factors such as public perception, infrastructure requirements, renewable energy scale, technological maturity, and regulatory frameworks.

Equity impact

medium

Impacts on equity are medium and context-specific. Shifts in employment opportunities from fossil fuels to renewables may require efforts to ensure equitable access based on factors like location, gender, age, and skills. While green ammonia can expand energy access, affordability may pose challenges for disadvantaged communities depending on costs.

Potential for transformative impact

medium - high

Green hydrogen-based ammonia represents a medium-to-high impact innovation, potentially serving as a game changer in the industry. It offers a sustainable and low-carbon alternative to conventional ammonia production but still requires high temperatures, leading to high energy consumption.

What factors influence scaling?

With the right policies in place, green ammonia could be widely cost competitive with grey ammonia from 2030 onwards. In the long term, this means that renewable ammonia will not only be a lead in renewable fertilizer production, but is also likely to become the main commodity for transporting renewable energy (hydrogen) between continents. Venture capital and private investment are being directed towards renewable energy technologies, hydrogen production, and ammonia production processes. Despite the initial excitement, it seems that some green ammonia projects have been stalling.

While this innovation doesn't inherently require bundling with other innovations, potential synergies exist with renewable energy generation to ensure a sustainable hydrogen supply. Additionally, implementing water management strategies to address water-related challenges and incorporating carbon capture and utilization technologies can enhance the overall sustainability of the production process.

This innovation has a global scope, with the limitation being the presence or potential development of renewable energy infrastructure in specific regions.

Adoption of this innovation is likely to encounter barriers, particularly related to high start-up and maintenance costs associated with renewable energy infrastructure and hydrogen production technologies. Availability of renewable energy resources and the capacity to integrate hydrogen-based ammonia production into existing agricultural systems will also influence its uptake. Large-scale food system actors may lead the initial adoption due to the considerable technical and financial challenges.

This innovation has the potential to be disruptive to existing production systems and value chains, particularly within the ammonia industry. These impacts fall mostly on the fossil-fuel side of the ammonia industry, with post-processors, handlers, storage and transporters and distributors, wholesalers, marketers, and retailers in the ammonia value chain facing minimal disruption.

Open the dynamic stakeholder map to see the current landscape: https://embed.kumu.io/a97fb03e174db679a51303f95ed6317a

Potential unintended consequences may arise from the production and sourcing of renewable energy for hydrogen production. Equity shifts may also depend on the renewable energy grid used in the production chain. Other risks that may need mitigating include the potential overuse of synthetic fertilizers.

KenGen and Kaishan Group launched plans for green ammonia plant in Olkaria geothermal fields, Naivasha, Kenya.

Biogas tanks

Where is acceleration most needed?

Accelerator scores reflect the degree of action needed across eight key accelerators of change that can enable an innovation to scale. A higher score signals that greater effort and support are needed in that area to unlock uptake at scale. Click on each accelerator to see what’s been achieved and what still needs attention.

Building Trust

Low

Building Trust

Renewable energy is widely accepted, and the proposed changes primarily impact fossil fuel industries, aligning with global efforts to transition away from them.

Transforming Mindsets

Low

Transforming Mindsets

Renewable energy enjoys broad acceptance, and the proposed changes mainly affect fossil fuel industries, which aligns with ongoing global efforts. Additionally, the process of electrolysis for green hydrogen production is neither novel nor highly complex.

Enabling Social License

Low - Medium

Enabling Social License

Pressuring stakeholders to gain social license will be crucial for driving the transition to green-hydrogen ammonia.

Ensuring Stable Finance

Medium

Ensuring Stable Finance

Initial pilots and projections show great potential, but further efforts are required to solidify cost-effectiveness and validate commercial viability. In 2026, costs of green ammonia can still be double as much as the fossil-based alternatives, which is strongly affected by the risks perceived by the investors due to high capex of green ammonia projects.

Designing Market Incentives

Medium - High

Designing Market Incentives

Financial incentives will play a significant role in catalyzing the initial shift toward achieving economies of scale. Mechanisms like long-term offtake agreements, price guarantees, and contracts-for-differences are needed to increase the confidence of investors, and decrease the cost of capital for the projects.

Changing Policies and Regulations

Low

Changing Policies and Regulations

While there are no fundamentally new technologies involved, regulations related to green hydrogen are of particular relevance in this context. Governmental support is needed worldwide to de-risk investments to green hydrogen projects.

Safeguarding Against Undesirable Effects

Medium

Safeguarding Against Undesirable Effects

Anticipated possibilities for undesirable effects are limited, as no radically new technologies are proposed. Economic viability remains of paramount importance, necessitating ongoing market monitoring.

Developing Transition Pathways

High

Developing Transition Pathways

Green-hydrogen-based ammonia can be viewed as the first generation of green ammonia, readily available by 2030, offering a pathway to subsequent, even more sustainable alternatives such as electrochemical or photochemical ammonia synthesis by 2050.

Reference

Babcock-Jackson, L., Konovalova, T., Krogman, J. P., Bird, R., & Díaz, L. L. (2023). Sustainable Fertilizers: Publication Landscape on Wastes as Nutrient Sources, Wastewater Treatment Processes for Nutrient Recovery, Biorefineries, and Green Ammonia Synthesis. In Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry (Vol. 71, Issue 22, pp. 8265–8296). American Chemical Society (ACS). https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jafc.3c00454

Bicer, Y., Dincer, I., Zamfirescu, C., Vezina, G., & Raso, F. (2016). Comparative life cycle assessment of various ammonia production methods. In Journal of Cleaner Production (Vol. 135, pp. 1379–1395). Elsevier BV. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2016.07.023

Garvey, S.M., Davidson, E.A., Wagner-Riddle, C. et al. Emerging opportunities and research questions for green ammonia adoption in agriculture and beyond. Nat. Rev. Clean Technol. 1, 10–11 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s44359-024-00012-2

Liu*, X., Liu, X., & Elgowainy, A. (2019, November 12). Life-cycle analysis of green ammonia and its application as Fertilizer Building Block. Ammonia Energy Association. https://www.ammoniaenergy.org/paper/life-cycle-analysis-of-green-ammonia-and-its-application-as-fertilizer-building-block/

Olabi, A. G., Abdelkareem, M. A., Al-Murisi, M., Shehata, N., Alami, A. H., Radwan, A., Wilberforce, T., Chae, K.-J., & Sayed, E. T. (2023). Recent progress in Green Ammonia: Production, applications, assessment; barriers, and its role in achieving the sustainable development goals. In Energy Conversion and Management (Vol. 277, p. 116594). Elsevier BV. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enconman.2022.116594

Smart, K. (2022). Review of Recent Progress in Green Ammonia Synthesis : Decarbonisation of fertiliser and fuels via green synthesis. In Johnson Matthey Technology Review (Vol. 66, Issue 3, pp. 230–244). Johnson Matthey. https://doi.org/10.1595/205651322×16334238659301