No Shore? No Problem. Blue Ammonia Sets Sail

BW Offshore and McDermott unveil a floating blue ammonia FPSO concept with near-total carbon capture built in

27 Mar 2026

Offshore oil and gas has a new ambition. BW Offshore and McDermott have unveiled a floating vessel concept capable of converting surplus natural gas into low-carbon ammonia entirely at sea, with near-total carbon capture built into every stage of production.

The concept is built around a floating production, storage, and offloading unit purpose-designed for blue ammonia output. Positioned near offshore gas sources, the vessel would receive natural gas via subsea flowline, convert it onboard into hydrogen and then ammonia, and store the finished product in refrigerated hull tanks for direct export to carriers. No pipelines, terminals, or port infrastructure needed.

The numbers are significant. The unit is designed to process up to 3 million cubic meters of gas per day, yielding more than one million tonnes of ammonia annually. Carbon capture is woven throughout the production process, targeting removal of up to 99% of CO2 generated onboard. That puts carbon intensity at roughly 0.5 tonnes of CO2 per tonne of ammonia, meeting international low-carbon thresholds. Further refinements to onboard power systems could push that figure close to zero.

For operators sitting on underutilized offshore gas assets, the appeal is clear. Leasing models would reduce upfront capital requirements and open the concept to producers of varying scale, lowering the barrier to entry considerably.

The timing matters. Global energy forecasters have flagged low-carbon ammonia as a priority fuel for sectors that electrification alone cannot decarbonize, particularly maritime transport and heavy industry. Producing ammonia offshore also cuts through the land availability disputes, permitting delays, and community opposition that tend to stall onshore alternatives before they start.

BW Offshore brings deep operational experience in floating production design; McDermott contributes large-scale engineering and execution muscle. The concept remains at an early stage, but the direction it signals is unmistakable: a new class of offshore infrastructure, built not for fossil fuels, but for the energy transition's hardest problems.