INTERVIEW: AM Green set for 2027 renewable ammonia launch with binding Uniper deal -- CEO

AM Green is on track to commence renewable ammonia production at its flagship Kakinada project in India in early 2027, CEO Gautam Kumbam told Platts, part of S&P Global Commodity Insights, in what has the potential to mark India's entry into large-scale new fuel exports.

The developer has secured a binding offtake agreement with Uniper and is advancing plans for 3 million mt/year of renewable ammonia production capacity across three locations in India, positioning itself as a major entity in the environment-friendly fuels market.

"For 3 million mt/year of green ammonia, the land is in place," Kumbam said on the sidelines of GH2's Green Hydrogen India Symposium April 4. "Our vision is, every year, from the first production coming online, we bring a million tons to the market, additionally, from 2027."

The Kakinada facility in Andhra Pradesh, which reached final investment decision in August 2024, will be the first phase of AM Green's plans. The project is slated to produce 1 million mt/year of renewable ammonia in two phases at an erstwhile fertilizer plant.

"We took a risk and it's paying off. We got an existing plant so we didn't really have an issue with the availability of land or water," he said. "We are converting a gray fertilizer unit into a green ammonia plant."

AM Green purchased the Nagarjuna Fertilizer plant and started to reform it in 2021-22, at a time when the idea to have a renewable ammonia production set in, deconstructing most of the plant, but keeping a part of it to be used in ammonia production, Kumbam said.

"We are essentially building a completely new plant. You only use a small 10% of the plant called the ammonia loop," he said. "So we have to build our own green power, electrolyzer, green-powered hydrogen plant."

That said, the existing infrastructure—the availability of water, the existing workforce and proximity to the Kakinada Anchorage Port—offer advantages and support for a speedy implementation, Kumbam said.

Beyond Kakinada, AM Green is developing similar-sized projects in Tuticorin in Tamil Nadu, and Kandla in Gujarat, with FIDs expected in the coming quarters, Kumbam said.

Asian decarbonization

AM Green is one of the projects in India to secure multiple offtake agreements with potential offtakers at an early stake. The company has nonbinding agreements with Yara, Keppel, BASF and RWE for intended end-use in a range of renewable hydrogen applications.

AM Green signed up with logistics company DP World to set up a renewable fuels supply chain to facilitate exports of 1 million mt/year of renewable ammonia and 1 million mt/year of renewable methanol from India.

Kumbam said Asian consumers have preferred low-carbon or blue hydrogen as a preferred mode of decarbonization which disadvantaged India, but in the long run, renewable hydrogen will prove to be more cost-effective.

"There's a lot of realization in Asia that they should be moving towards a stricter definition [of renewable hydrogen/ammonia] because eventually if the carbon price goes up, the little extra cost of green ammonia will more than justify the carbon footprint of low-carbon ammonia," he said.

Indian demand

As for the domestic market, with the cost of natural gas in the range of $10/MMBtu to $15/MMBtu, renewable hydrogen/ammonia in refineries and fertilizer plants would be the way forward, Kumbam added.

"We are very hopeful India will get a big impetus from this industry," he added referring to the emerging renewable hydrogen/ammonia sector.

A participant in the Kakinada project is oil and gas company Petronas' renewable energy unit Gentari, which aims to export to Asia and Europe through the AM Green Kakinada project and other projects of its own.

Meanwhile, Technip Energies NV, through its joint venture Rely, has been awarded an engineering, procurement, construction management and commissioning services contract by AM Green at Kakinada.

In an earlier interview, Mahesh Kolli, group president of AM Green, said India can achieve renewable hydrogen's cost of production in the $3-$4/kg range and that too without subsidies.

The founders of renewables company Greenko, including Kolli, established AM Green.

Platts assessed South Australia hydrogen produced via alkaline electrolysis (including capex) at $5.72/kg on April 8, down 3.89% month over month.

Japan hydrogen produced via alkaline electrolysis (including capex) was assessed at $4.65/kg on April 9, down 18.13% month over month.