Tag: Methanol

The ammonia industry has always dealt with fluctuations in supply and demand as well as volatile feedstock and energy costs. The unexpected global pandemic that started in 2020 has injected a higher degree of uncertainty for ammonia manufacturers’ operating costs and product demand for fertilizer. W. Poe of AVEVA discusses how advanced process control systems can help ammonia producers turn economic uncertainty into a competitive advantage.

A recent report from BloombergNEF (New Energy Foundation) looking ahead to 2050 argues that green hydrogen can be cheaper than natural gas. It finds that ‘green’ hydrogen from renewables should become cheaper than natural gas (on an energy-equivalent basis) by 2050 in 15 of the 28 markets modelled, assuming scale-up continues. These countries accounted for one-third of global GDP in 2019. In all of the markets BNEF modelled, ‘green’ hydrogen should also become cheaper than both ‘blue’ hydrogen (from fossil fuels with carbon capture and storage – CCS) and even ‘grey’ hydrogen from fossil fuels without CCS. The cost of producing ‘green’ hydrogen from renewable electricity should fall by up to 85% from today to 2050, the report predicts, leading to costs below $1/kg ($7.4/MMBtu) by 2050 in most markets. These costs are 13% lower than BNEF’s previous 2030 forecast and 17% lower than their previous 2050 forecast. Falling costs of solar photovoltaic (PV) electricity are the key driver behind the reduction; BNEF now believes that PV electricity will be 40% cheaper in 2050 than they had thought just two years ago, driven by more automatic manufacturing, less silicon and silver consumption, higher photovoltaic efficiency of solar cells, and greater yields using bifacial panels.

Gas availability and pricing continues to affect ammonia and methanol output from Trinidad, while Venezuela struggles with sanctions and political instability.

Judging by the pages of the project announcements in our news section, you’d be forgiven for thinking that the ammonia and methanol industries were all running off hydrogen generated from electrolysis, and that we had already entered an era of ‘clean’ chemical generation which did not require fossil fuels as a feedstock. Of course, while companies can naturally be forgiven for wanting to put the best public face on their green credentials, it does obscure the fact that for the moment 99% of syngas generation comes from natural gas, coal, and some coke or naphtha.

Reducing the carbon footprint in the synthesis of chemicals is a new global challenge as the world works towards providing sustainable products designed to minimise their environmental impacts throughout their whole lifecycle. This article looks at the role of blue technologies as part of a roadmap towards the decarbonisation of fuels and chemicals.

The ammonia industry faced a difficult February, due to extremely cold weather conditions in the northern hemisphere. In the US, production outages resulting from winter storm Uri affected up to 7 million t/a of capacity.

As industry trends add pressure to optimise processes, new digital technologies for roundthe-clock, data-driven decision-making can help plants boost production efficiency without time-consuming manual analysis or large-scale investment. Here, Dr S. Werner of Navigance explores their potential and shares the difference they are already making.

The ammonia industry seems to have quite a buzz about it at the moment. As can be glimpsed in our Nitrogen Industry News section this issue, the number of proposed green ammonia production sites continues to grow, as does interest in ammonia as a hydrogen or energy carrier, while the shipping sector continues to seriously consider ammonia as a green fuel candidate for the longer term. The latter prospect could see current ammonia demand double by 2050, although as our article on sustainable nitrogen production on page 22 notes, whether enough renewable power will exist by then to generate that must be seriously doubted.

The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) says that it plans to build a $3 billion methanol plant on Brass Island in the Niger Delta to produce up to 10,000 t/d of methanol using from gas supplied by Shell. A final investment decision was made by NNPC, DSV Engineering and the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board, a state agency set up to ensure Nigerian involvement in oil and gas projects. Around 70% of funding for the project will come from international lenders, including the China Export-Import Bank, the African Development Bank and international commercial banks, with the rest funded from an equity issue. BP has signed a 10 year offtake deal for the plant’s output with the Brass Fertilizer & Petrochemical Company, the entity set up to operate the plant. Construction of the plant is expected to be completed by 2025.

M. Baerends of Fluor reports on the conception, engineering, construction, commissioning and start-up of a new sulphuric acid plant that replaced an existing acid plant at a European sour gas processing terminal. This highly complex gas processing facility handles sour gas from an off-shore field, containing H2 S that must be removed to meet transmission grid specifications. Various issues encountered, their resolution by the joint owner, Fluor and Topsoe team, and plant operating results are discussed.