MISC and China Offshore Engineering & Technology Company (China Offshore) have obtained an approval in principle (AiP) from the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) for their ammonia floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) concept. The AiP was granted on 2 December 2025 in Shanghai, China.
The ammonia FPSO concept applies established onshore ammonia production technology to an offshore setting. The facility is designed to use unutilised hydrocarbon gas from nearby offshore installations and convert it into blue ammonia, which is stored on board under cryogenic conditions. The standalone unit is described as providing upstream developers with a way to monetise gas that would otherwise be re-injected, while shortening the ammonia supply chain and improving its well-to-gate emissions profile.
Under the concept, feed gas will be supplied from a host facility such as an oil-producing FPSO. When onboard storage nears capacity, liquid ammonia can be transferred directly in tandem to liquid ammonia carriers (LAC). The topside plant follows a modular layout, allowing it to handle varying feed gas specifications and to produce clean ammonia with 99.8% purity. The unit is designed for an annual production capacity of 1 million tonnes of liquid ammonia.
The project is being jointly developed by MISC and China Offshore in cooperation with ammonia technology licensor Kellogg Brown & Root (KBR) and LNT Marine for the ammonia cargo containment system based on the LNT A-BOX design. ABS has been appointed by the consortium to provide an independent review of the concept and to verify its technical feasibility and safety.
Zahid Osman, President and Group CEO of MISC, said the ammonia FPSO concept supports the company’s efforts to deliver more energy with reduced emissions and reflects strategic collaboration aimed at change within the offshore industry. He noted that adapting proven onshore technology for offshore use is intended to help the sector move towards lower-carbon operations.
Miguel Hernandez, Senior Vice President, Global Offshore at ABS, said the society is contributing its experience with ammonia-related safety challenges and its technical expertise on complex floating production facilities to the project.
The ammonia FPSO project is currently in the preliminary front-end engineering design (pre-FEED) stage. This phase includes a detailed assessment of capital and operating expenditures (CAPEX and OPEX) and is scheduled for completion in the first quarter of 2026.
The AiP for this ammonia FPSO concept follows shortly after ABS granted an approval in principle to Deltamarin and China Merchants Heavy Industry (CMHI) for a new FPSO hull design.
