The Race to Develop Ammonia-Fueled Engines: WinGD Making Strides

The competition to deliver the first ammonia-fueled engine is heating up, with Swiss-based WinGD making significant progress towards completing final validation for engine deliveries slated for June 2025. The company recently announced that it expects to conduct multi-cylinder engine tests in the coming months to validate the full-scale engine, turbocharger configuration, and control systems.

Sebastian Hensel, WinGD’s Vice President of Research & Development, stated, “The single-cylinder X DF A concept is running well, with combustion efficiency, emissions, and pilot consumption meeting our expectations.”

WinGD initiated its dedicated ammonia development program in 2019, with the project advancing to experiments using the company’s spray combustion chamber in 2022. The development efforts have focused on optimizing emissions, performance, and safety concepts for the new engines.

The X-DF-A platform, based on the well-established diesel-cycle concept, incorporates new technologies for efficient ammonia injection and combustion while minimizing emissions. WinGD’s testing and validation processes have demonstrated the transferability of results from test rigs to engine conditions, enabling rapid progress in validating their new technology.

The company has received nearly 30 orders for X DF A engines across various segments, including bulk carriers, containerships, tankers, and LPG/ammonia carriers. The initial engines will be installed on vessels owned by Exmar LPG and CMB.Tech.

Progress Across the Industry

Other engine manufacturers, such as MAN Energy Solutions and Wartsila, are also making headway in developing ammonia-fueled engines. MAN Energy Solutions has been testing a full-scale, two-stroke engine running on ammonia at its Research Centre Copenhagen, focusing on combustion, emissions, engine-tuning, atomizer testing, and control-system verification.

Wartsila has reported advancements in single-cylinder engine testing and is working on a multifuel engine, with plans to deliver the first ammonia engines in 2025.

As the industry races towards sustainable shipping solutions, the development of ammonia-fueled engines represents a significant step towards reducing emissions and transitioning to cleaner energy sources in the maritime sector.