BASF SE says that it has made changes to its board of executive directors in line with its “Winning Ways” strategy. The Supervisory Board has appointed Dr. Mary Kurian and Dr. Livio Tedeschi as members of the Board of Executive Directors effective from May 1, 2026. At the same time, Michael Heinz will retire as planned.
Topsoe has signed an offtake agreement to provide its Solid Oxide Electrolyser Cell (SOEC) technology for Forestal’s Triskelion green methanol plant in Galicia. The SOEC’s will be delivered from Topsoe’s manufacturing facility in Herning, Denmark, which is nearing the final stage of readiness for industrial-scale production. The agreement, which includes a 10-year service warranty program, builds on Topsoe’s existing agreement with Forestal, announced in December 2024, to provide its e-methanol synthesis technology, catalysts and engineering for highly efficient e-methanol production.
Clariant has signed a supply agreement with SYPOX to manufacture and deliver catalysts for what is claimed to be the world’s largest electric steam methane reformer (e-SMR). The project combines SYPOX’s electrical reformer technology with Clariant’s expertise to enable syngas production with significantly reduced CO2 emissions. Scheduled to begin operations in 2026, the e-SMR will use 10 MW of renewable electricity to generate approximately 150 t/d of syngas.
Swiss technology company ABB has signed a term sheet agreement with SwitcH2 to engineer and supply automation and electrification solutions for SwitcH2’s floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) unit dedicated to producing green ammonia from green hydrogen, to support future demand for low-carbon marine fuels.
India is preparing to set up its first urea manufacturing facility in Russia to secure long-term fertiliser supplies and reduce exposure to global price shocks, according to Indian media reports. The proposed project, backed by Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilisers (RCF), National Fertilisers Ltd (NFL) and Indian Potash Ltd (IPL), aims to tap Russia’s abundant reserves of natural gas and ammonia, key raw materials that India lacks. The venture is reportedly scheduled to be announced during Vladimir Putin’s visit to India in December. The facility is said to aim at ultimately producing 2 million t/a of urea. India is currently the second-largest consumer and third-largest producer of fertilisers globally, but it remains vulnerable to global commodity swings.
Already a large urea supplier to the region, Indonesia has plans for several new plants to monetise its natural gas resources.
Kent, a global leader in integrated energy services, has been appointed by ACWA Power as owner’s engineer for the Yanbu Green Hydrogen Hub, a major green hydrogen and ammonia export facility being developed in Saudi Arabia. Situated in the port city of Yanbu on the Red Sea, the project will feature full integration across the green hydrogen value chain. This includes its own dedicated renewable power generation, desalination plants, ammonia production lines and an export terminal. At full scale, the facility will deliver up to 400,000 t/a of renewable hydrogen, converted into over 2.2 million t/a of green ammonia for international markets. With more than 4 GW of electrolysis capacity planned, the Yanbu hub is expected to be nearly twice the size of the NEOM Green Hydrogen Project.
Blue ammonia – ammonia produced from fossil hydrogen with carbon capture and storage (CCS) – offers a cheaper alternative than green ammonia for low carbon supply in the short term, and is more suited to retrofits.
Venkat Pattabathula of SVP Chemical Plant Services, Taylor Archer of Clariant and Seshu Dharmavaram of Air Products, all AIChE Ammonia Safety Committee members, look back at some of the key lessons learned from the Symposium’s 70 year history.
l The market looks very tight through the end of the year, though some expect supply to improve in Q4. Prices are unlikely to ease in the coming weeks. l Woodside’s Beaumont New Ammonia Project is now 97% complete, and the producer expects production from the first train in late 2025. There is no information from Gulf Coast Ammonia on when to expect commercial production. l There was an absence of fresh confirmed business into northwest Europe. Still, producers with ammonia capacity in the region are expected to be maximising output given the favourable economics at current spot natural-gas prices at the Dutch TTF.