Australia’s NH3 Clean Energy has signed a commitment agreement with Pilbara Ports Authority for the intended lease of land at the Port of Dampier to support its planned WAH2 clean ammonia project.
As disclosed, the commitment agreement contemplates NH3 leasing a parcel of approximately 7.5 hectares of land at the Port of Dampier to support the ammonia loading operations of the WAH2 project.
NH3 and Pilbara Ports agreed to negotiate the execution of the lease no later than March 2027.
The company intends to use the land for ammonia storage buffering near the Port of Dampier Bulk Liquids Berth, which would facilitate ‘significant operational flexibility and expansion capability’ for the WAH2 project.
NH3’s Chairman, Charles Whitfield , commented: “Pilbara Ports continues to be a valuable and forward-looking partner in the development of the clean ammonia business both for bunkering and access to the international market. While we already have sufficient land for multiple expansion phases at the Maitland SIA site, appropriate land within the Port of Dampier is extremely scarce. Leasing this site should provide a significant benefit to the WAH2 Project for both initial operations and for future capacity expansion.”
Said to further advance the collaboration between NH3 and Pilbara Ports regarding the WAH2 project, the agreement comes on the back of existing deals concerning the shipment of clean ammonia and the establishment of clean ammonia bunkering operations at the Port of Dampier.
The WAH2 project aims to supply low-emissions ammonia to the decarbonizing powerhouse economies of the Asia Pacific, including Japan and South Korea as well as being a source of decarbonized bunker fuel for powering bulk carriers carrying iron ore from Australia to Asia.
NH3 recently launched the front-end engineering and design (FEED) phase and is also progressing discussions for the construction and operation of the project as well as self financing.
The final investment decision (FID) is expected in late 2026.