There is a billion-dollar industry that could help stimulate the Australian economy, and yes, it begins with an A, but no, it is not AI.
Unlike AI, there is little dispute over its contribution to the environment.
The industry in question is ammonia, specifically low-emissions ammonia, also known as clean ammonia.
It is set to become a major contributor to cleaning up the shipping industry by helping decarbonise fuel used by maritime vessels, and it is increasingly being sought in Asia to help decarbonise power generation.
Ammonia is best known as the foundation of the fertiliser industry, and it also forms a key ingredient in explosives used by the mining sector.
However, industry figures argue that low-emissions ammonia could become a significant contributor to the Australian economy in the years ahead.
Australia has the natural resources, export infrastructure, established trading relationships and maritime activity that could position it as a significant clean ammonia producer on the world stage.
“It is not often that Australia has such an opportunity to lead on the global stage,” said Stephen Hall, CEO of NH3 Clean Energy.
“To not take that opportunity would be such a waste, in terms of diversifying Australia’s economy, strengthening it and reducing emissions.”
One project already illustrating the scale of this potential is the WAH2 Project in Maitland, near Karratha in Western Australia.
The project recently received an independent report valuing its potential contribution to the Australian economy in the billions of dollars.
The ACIL Allen report determined that the NH3 Clean Energy project alone had the capacity to boost Australia’s Gross Domestic Product by $7.3 billion over the life of the project, at an average of $253 million per year.
The report also found the project could increase Australia’s real income by $6.2 billion over the life of the project, at an average of over $212 million per year.
“Ammonia is the thing you might not have heard of, but something you cannot afford to ignore,” Hall says.
With the economic upside indicated by the ACIL Allen report, clean ammonia would appear to be an industry that the Australian government cannot afford to ignore either.
As nations across Asia look to decarbonise power generation and the global shipping industry searches for cleaner fuel alternatives, Australia’s position as a potential major supplier of low-emissions ammonia could prove to be a significant, if underappreciated, driver of economic growth and diversification in the years to come.
