Magazine: Nitrogen+Syngas

Expensive feedstock, overseas competition and tightening environmental regulations all pose potential threats to Europe’s nitrogen industry.

A complete list of all articles and news items appearing in Nitrogen+Syngas magazine during 2024.

While there is still a considerable push for use of biomass waste as a lower carbon feedstock for chemical production via gasification to syngas, biological processes such as fermentation are increasingly gaining traction as an alternative.

Toyo Engineering Corporation has developed two new digital solutions, MethaMaster™ and MethaDynamics™ , which enhance the operational efficiency of e-methanol production from variable renewable energy.

The production of urea, a critical component in the fertilizer industry, involves highly corrosive environments, particularly in the high-pressure sections of the process. This necessitates the use of advanced materials that can withstand such aggressive conditions to ensure long life and efficiency of urea production plants. Alleima, Stamicarbon, Saipem and TOYO report on their advanced material and equipment solutions for the urea industry.

Nitrogen+Syngas went to press just a few days before Donald Trump’s swearing-in as the next president of the United States. While it is sometimes difficult to sort the truth from the hyperbole in his public pronouncements, nevertheless, if taken at face value, they would seem to indicate that we may be in for a turbulent four years in commodity markets in particular. While he is an avowed military non-interventionist, on the economic policy side he has emerged as a firm believer in the power of tariffs to alter markets in the favour of the US, and has promised 20% tariffs on all goods entering the US, potentially rising to 25% for Canada and Mexico, and 60% for his particular bugbear, China, sparking a scramble for wholesalers to stock up in the last few weeks of the Biden presidency. Trump previously raised tariffs on Chinese goods entering the US to 20% during his first term, and the Biden administration made no attempt to reverse this, and even added some additional ones, for example 20% on Russian and Moroccan phosphate imports.

Johnson Matthey technology selected for one of the largest planned e-methanol plants in Europe Reolum project represents the fifth win contributing to JM’s strategic milestone of 20 sustainable technologies project wins by the end of 2025/26 JM has won 15 major energy transition projects since 1st April 2022 Sustainable energy project to operate in region […]

While underlying supply and demand criteria continue to set floors and ceilings for nitrogen and other syngas derived products, political events as ever have the potential to derail all calculations. While much attention has focused on the US election, the escalating crisis in the Middle East continues to have the potential to threaten fertilizer trade in multiple ways. As this issue was going to press, Israel had just launched its retaliatory missile strike on Tehran, on October 26th, the latest in a series of tit for tat attacks between Israel and Iran, in particular an Iranian missile strike on Israel on October 1st. The Iranian government appeared to be downplaying the results as “limited”, but said that it considered itself “entitled and obligated to defend itself”.

CRU’s 38th Nitrogen+Syngas Expoconference will be held on 10-12 February 2025 in Barcelona. The most respected technical event for the global nitrogen and syngas community offers an ideal platform for industry professionals to connect, do business and learn about the latest innovations in operations, technology, process and equipment. The annual meeting attracts a global audience of producers, licensors and materials and equipment providers representing an unparalleled opportunity for business networking and peer-to-peer knowledge sharing.

In October, ammonia benchmarks were more or less stable across the board. West of Suez, supply from Algeria was constrained by an ongoing turnaround at one of domestic player Sorfert’s production units. Still, demand from NW Europe remained quiet, although CF was set to receive a 15,000 tonne spot cargo from Hexagon some time in November, reportedly sourced somewhere in the region of $530/t f.o.b. Turkey. While regional supply appeared tight, steadily improving output from Trinidad and the US Gulf could alleviate recent pressures, with many players of the opinion that Yara and Mosaic could agree a $560/t c.fr rollover for November at Tampa as a result.