CF Industries, JERA and Mitsui partner on $4 billion ammonia project in US

U.S. ammonia producer CF Industries has joined forces with Japanese giants JERA and Mitsui & Co. on a $4 billion low-carbon ammonia project in Louisiana, U.S.

It is understood that the companies formed a joint venture with CF Industries holding 40%, JERA holding 35% and Mitsui holding 25% ownership.

Together, the partners will construct at CF Industries’ Blue Point Complex in Louisiana an autothermal reforming (ATR) ammonia production facility with a carbon dioxide (CO2) dehydration and compression unit at the site to prepare captured CO2 for transportation and sequestration.

The estimated cost for the facility is approximately $4 billion, which will, reportedly, be funded by each partner according to their ownership percentage.

As disclosed, the ammonia production facility will have an annual nameplate capacity of approximately 1.4 million metric tons, which, according to CF Industries, would be the largest ammonia production facility by nameplate capacity in the world. Construction is projected to begin in 2026, with low-carbon ammonia production expected in 2029.

CF Industries said it will build and operate scalable infrastructure at the Blue Point site to supply the ammonia production facility with services, including product storage and loading, adding that it will invest approximately $550 million for these facilities and receive ongoing services revenue from the joint venture facility.

The U.S. company also revealed that it will be responsible for the operation and maintenance of the production facility and that product offtake will be handled independently by the three companies according to their ownership percentage.

As for the sequestration of carbon dioxide (CO2), CF Industries said that 1PointFive, a carbon capture, utilization and sequestration (CCUS) company and subsidiary of Occidental, will transport and sequester approximately 2.3 million metric tons of CO2 annually at 1PointFive’s Pelican Sequestration Hub in Louisiana.

French Technip Energies will perform the engineering, procurement, equipment and module fabrication for the production facility. It will work with Danish Topsoe, to which the joint venture awarded the process license for their low-carbon (blue) SynCOR ATR ammonia plant technology.

Tony Will, President and CEO of CF Industries, stated: “CF Industries is proud to partner with global leaders JERA and Mitsui to build the leading low-carbon ammonia production facility in the world. Our joint venture represents tangible progress towards building a reliable and affordable low-carbon ammonia value chain to meet what we expect to be robust global demand for low-carbon ammonia for both traditional and new applications.”

Yukio Kani, JERA’s Global CEO and Chair, stressed: “Collaboration and partnership are at the heart of JERA’s strategy to achieve our decarbonization goals. This Blue Point project is a testament to the strong alliances we are building to advance low-carbon solutions. The U.S. remains a cornerstone market for JERA, and this initiative underscores our long-term commitment to expanding our presence with diversified and sustainable energy projects. As we move forward, we will continue to accelerate the availability of low-carbon fuels and develop their supply chains, driving meaningful progress toward a more stable and cleaner energy future.”

Kenichi Hori, President and CEO of Mitsui & Co., commented: “We are excited to announce the achievement of this significant milestone together with CF Industries and JERA to invest in this large-scale low-carbon ammonia project in Louisiana. Mitsui will establish a low-carbon ammonia value-chain worldwide by leveraging its presence in the US gas value chain from natural gas to chemicals including this project, and our strength and track record in the global trading of ammonia. We aim to lower carbon emissions across various industries through investment in projects of this kind.”

It is worth mentioning that in regard to the joint venture, JERA has a conditional option to reduce its ownership percentage that expires on December 31, 2025. If the specified condition is met, Japan’s major can, reportedly, reduce its ownership below 35% but not lower than 20%. CF Industries would have the right and obligation to increase its ownership by the same amount that JERA reduces.

To remind, JERA and CF Industries executed an agreement to jointly explore the development of a low-carbon ammonia production project in the U.S. at the beginning of 2024.