Nutrien Ltd. (TSX: NTR) announced on Wednesday a plan to build what it touts to be the largest clean ammonia facility in the world. The project is estimated to cost $2 billion over a three-year period of construction.
“Our commitment to the development and use of both low-carbon and clean ammonia is prominent in our strategy to provide solutions that will help meet the world’s decarbonization goals, while sustainably addressing global food insecurity,” said Interim President and CEO Ken Seitz.
Targeted to be installed in the firm’s existing Geismar, LA facility, the planned project is expected to manufacture clean ammonia “using innovative technology to achieve at least a 90% reduction in CO2 emissions.”
The plant’s estimated annual capacity would be 1.2 million metric tonnes of clean ammonia, effectively sequestering more than 1.8 million metric tonnes of CO2.
The project is said to go directly to the front-end engineering design phase, with the final investment decision expected in 2023. Construction is estimated to begin in 2024 and full ammonia production is expected to start in 2027.
The agritech firm also signed a term sheet with energy firm Denbury Inc. to expand the existing carbon sequestration capacity of its Geismar facility. It also inked a letter of intent for collaboration with Mitsubishi Corporation, targeting the latter to distribute 40% of the expected production out of the planned ammonia facility to the Asian fuel market.
The firm joins the race for ammonia production, which saw this month alone both the joint venture entered by Enbridge Inc. (TSX: ENB) to produce ammonia and AmmPower Corp (CSE: AMMP) producing its first ammonia.
Nutrien last traded at $130.72 on the TSX.
Information for this briefing was found via Sedar and the companies mentioned. The author has no securities or affiliations related to this organization. Not a recommendation to buy or sell. Always do additional research and consult a professional before purchasing a security. The author holds no licenses.
