Hy2gen receives zoning plan approval for the Iverson renewable ammonia plant - the plant is expected to reduce around 3 million tons of CO2 emissions in its first ten years.
Nitric acid demand continues to be dominated by fertilizer uses via various nitrate and NPK fertilizers, but industrial chemical production, metallurgical uses and explosives production are continuing to contribute to growth, especially in Asia.
At the end of this year, the European Union’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) will move from its transitional phase into its ‘definitive’ phase, whereby the carbon costs of goods entering the EU will need to be priced in. CBAM requires suppliers to calculate the carbon emissions of their fertilizer (and other, e.g. steel) products, including indirect emissions, for example from electricity consumed in the process, and emissions of precursor or raw materials. They will then need to purchase CBAM certificates to cover embedded emissions above the established free allowance benchmark rates determined by the European Commission: 1.57 tonnes CO2e/tonne ammonia and 0.23 tCO2e/t nitric acid.
Clariant to manufacture catalyst for SYPOX e-SMR - planned to produce 150 tons of syngas a day
thyssenrkupp Uhde's EnviNOx® technology for Covestro Baytown site
Kazakhstan Zinc (KazZinc) is progressing with plans to reduce sulphur dioxide emissions from its Ust-Kamenogorsk site following an environmental audit in December 2024 as a result of smogs caused fugitive emissions which forced residents to stay indoors. The site has reduced emissions from 69,000 t/a in 2011 to 15,000 t/a, but plans to invest $210 million in in new technologies, including sulphur dioxide recovery systems and upgraded filters for solid particle capture. The key measure is the modernisation of gas purification units which is expected to reduce SO2 emissions by 2,200 t/a by 2026. Another important initiative is the construction of the “Hydropolimet” workshop at the KazZinc Ridder metallurgical complex, which aims to reduce sulphur dioxide emissions by 714 t/a.
Axens says that it has completed the expansion of its Axens Catalyst Arabia Ltd site, aimed at providing local and regional partners with the latest tail gas treatment catalysts, in addition to the site’s legacy catalyst hydroprocessing manufacturing capacity. This makes Axens is the first and only company to produce tail gas treatment catalysts in the Middle East. The company says that the expansion consolidates its capacity to serve its regional customers to meet regulatory requirements and maximise sulphur recovery by up to 99.9%, minimising SOx emissions. The production site supplies the region’s refining and gas industries with the latest generation of Axens’ catalysts, capable of operating at lower temperatures than conventional catalysts, and resulting in lower energy consumption.
lomarlabs, the innovation arm of Lomar Shipping, has announced a strategic collaboration with Newlight, a technology company specialising in hybrid hydrogen-diesel engine retrofits, to accelerate the adoption of cost-effective, lower-emission solutions for the shipping industry. This collaboration will focus on retrofitting conventional diesel engines to operate on a hydrogen-diesel mix, reducing fuel consumption on average by 20% and significantly lowering greenhouse gas emissions. Savings of up to 30% have already been demonstrated in workshop trials and this new collaboration will seek to replicate this onboard vessels.
Wi th future demand for both low carbon methanol and ammonia depending to a considerable extent on their take-up as low carbon shipping fuels, recent developments in the EU and IMO may help accelerate that process, as detailed in CRU’s most recent Low Carbon Hydrogen and Ammonia Outlook.
Japan’s New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO) says that the world’s first commercial-use ammonia-fuelled vessel, Sakigake, has successfully completed a three-month demonstration voyage, during which the vessel engaged in tugboat operations in Tokyo Bay, while achieving greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reductions of up to 95%. The vessel was completed by Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK) and IHI Power Systems in August 2024, in cooperation with Nippon Kaiji Kyokai (ClassNK) as part of a Green Innovation Fund Project. NEDO says that the vessel will continue to be used for tugboat operations in Tokyo Bay, and the organisation will continue to promote research and development of next-generation fuel vessels, including developing an ammonia-fuelled ammonia gas carrier, in conjunction with NYK, Japan Engine Corporation, IPS, and Nippon Shipyard. This vessel is scheduled to be delivered in November 2026.