Saudi Arabia’s Aramco and SABIC Agri-Nutrients Company (“SABIC AN”)  have received the world’s first independent certification recognizing “blue” hydrogen and ammonia production.

Aramco’s wholly-owned refinery (SASREF) and SABIC AN, in Jubail, were both inspected and certified by TÜV Rheinland, an independent testing, inspection, and certification agency based in Germany.

Olivier Thorel, Aramco Vice President of Chemicals, said: “These certifications are the first of their kind in the world and signify a major milestone in our efforts to develop clean energy solutions, and advance our hydrogen and ammonia export capabilities.”

SABIC Agri-Nutrients CEO, Abdulrahman Shamsaddin, said: “We are indeed proud of this certification, which is part of our journey towards carbon neutrality. We are confident of further boosting growth with our low carbon portfolio helping our fertilizers as well as chemicals customers achieve their very own sustainability ambitions.”

SABIC Vice President, Energy Efficiency and Carbon Management, Fahad Al-Sherehy said: “To help achieve Saudi Arabia’s target for net-zero by 2060 as part of the Saudi Green Initiative, SABIC recognizes that hydrogen will play an essential role in decarbonisation and it is part of SABIC’s overall roadmap toward carbon neutrality by 2050, with a 20% reduction target in carbon emissions by 2030.”

In 2020, Aramco and SABIC shipped 40 tons of high-grade blue ammonia, a carrier of hydrogen, from Saudi Arabia to Japan.

As a result of these new certifications, SABIC and Aramco have become global leaders in hydrogen and ammonia. Aramco plans to produce 11 million tons of blue ammonia by 2030 and is developing carbon capture and hydrogen capabilities. Through blue hydrogen production, Aramco will achieve net-zero scope 1 and scope 2 greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 across its wholly owned operations.