Decarbonising Maritime Transport For Iron Ore

By Rodney Weidemann

Recent Global Maritime Forum (GMF) analysis reveals that the South Africa-Europe iron ore shipping route could feasibly deploy green ammonia-powered iron ore carriers from 2029, and reach full decarbonisation by 2035.

A feasibility study produced in collaboration with a consortium created in 2023 – which includes Anglo American,
CMB.TECH, Freeport Saldanha, VUKA Marine, and ENGIE – noted that the corridor linking Saldanha Bay in the Western Cape to the Port of Rotterdam in the Netherlands would be one of the first global south to north green shipping routes.

Shanon Neumann, associate: investment facilitation at Freeport Saldanha, points out that if you look at iron ore, manganese, coal and other bulk commodities, the value chain doesn’t stop at the mine gate.

“A significant share of embedded emissions stems from long-distance shipping, travelling from the global south to markets in Europe and Asia. If we ignore that, mining companies will increasingly face pressure from customers, financiers and regulators on their Scope 3 emissions,” she indicates.

“Ammonia-fuelled bulk carriers are among the most promising options for deep-sea, heavy-duty routes such as iron ore. The feasibility study on the South Africa-Europe iron ore corridor shows that ammonia-fuelled bulk carriers could start operating from around 2029, and scale towards full decarbonisation by 2035.”

She says shipping is responsible for roughly 3% of global CO₂ emissions, and bulk commodities are a big slice of that.

“For deep-sea shipping, we don’t have many credible, scalable zero-carbon options. Green ammonia is one of the front-runners, alongside e-methanol and, in some niches, synthetic methane and e-diesel.”

Neumann says these bulk carriers tie into decarbonisation strategies for 2035 in three ways:

■      Fuel choice: Green ammonia is energy-dense, can be stored as a liquid, and can be produced at scale from green hydrogen. This makes it suitable for long-haul bulk routes, where batteries or even methanol struggle with energy density.

■      Fleet replacement cycles: Many current ships will be due for replacement or major retrofits in the 2030s. Designing these as ammonia-ready or ammonia-capable vessels creates a natural window for change.

Alignment with upstream hydrogen projects: Ammonia provides a direct offtake route for green hydrogen projects at Boegoebaai, Saldanha and Walvis Bay.

Ammonia-fuelled carriers are important because they unlock upstream hydrogen projects, derisk mining and steel decarbonisation, and send a strong signal to regulators and financiers that this route can be run on zero-carbon fuel by the 2030s, says Neumann.

“The development of these green corridors will be accelerated by the recently announced green hydrogen projects near Boegoebaai, Saldanha, and Walvis Bay.”

These corridors are no longer theoretical, says Neumann, and success will depend on collaboration and sequencing.

“Mining houses, shipowners, ports, hydrogen developers and governments will have to move together on offtake contracts, regulation, skills and infrastructure. We also need to keep communities and workers at the centre, as these projects can bring real local benefits – jobs, training, small-business opportunities – if they’re structured with inclusivity in mind.”

If we get that right, she says, South Africa and its neighbours can do more than just ship green ore. “We can become core nodes in the global green shipping and green hydrogen economy, shaping the standards and capturing value – not watching it happen from the sidelines.”