Ammonia: Emissions
One per cent of the world's energy CO2 in one molecule
One per cent of the world's energy CO2 in one molecule What this tab covers The greenhouse-gas footprint per tonne, split by lifecycle phase (feedstock, production, movement, use, end of life), the global total, other environmental impacts, levers and low-carbon routes, India's position, and where the investment opportunity lies. Emission intensity 2.80 t CO2e per t range about 0.3-4.5 · IEA world average direct 2.4 t CO2 per t plus upstream gas and coal supply and power (indicative 0.3-0.5); gas best practice about 1.8-2.0, coal 3.5-4.5, green under 0.5 Global emissions per year 420 Mt CO2 per year 2022 · direct emissions from ammonia production: IEA puts ammonia at 45% of the 935 Mt of direct CO2 from primary chemicals in 2022 (the 2021 Ammonia Technology Roadmap gave about 450 Mt on earlier output at 2.4 t CO2 per t)Per t of ammonia, cradle-to-gate. Intensity: IEA Ammonia Technology Roadmap (2021); upstream indicative. Global total: IEA Chemicals tracking (2023); IEA Ammonia Technology Roadmap (2021).
Share of footprint by lifecycle phase
Feedstock 13% Production / process 85% Movement 2%Footprint by lifecycle phase
| Phase | Intensity | Share | Main sources of emissions | Notes | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feedstock | about 0.3-0.5 t CO2e per t | 13% | methane leaks and energy in gas supply; coal mine methane | basin dependent | indicative |
| Production / process | about 2.4 t CO2 per t (world average direct) | 85% | reforming and gasification carbon, fuel for heat | about 1.2-1.3 t of the CO2 is a pure stream, much used for urea (and released in the field) | IEA (2021) |
| Movement | about 0.05 t CO2e per t | 2% | refrigeration and shipping | only about a tenth is shipped | indicative |
| Use | no CO2; N2O from fertiliser use and nitric acid plants | – | soil N2O and nitric acid N2O dominate the nitrogen chain's footprint | field use is about 58.6% of the synthetic N chain's emissions (Menegat et al. 2022) | Menegat, Ledo and Tirado (2022) |
| End of life | not applicable | – | nitrogen ends in crops, soils and water | not recycled | USGS MCS 2026 |
Other environmental impacts
Ammonia volatilisation forms fine particulate pollution; nitrate leaching and runoff cause dead zones. Ammonia is acutely toxic and ammonium nitrate is an explosion hazard (Beirut 2020).
Levers to cut emissions
- Carbon capture on the pure CO2 stream (blue ammonia), at 10-100% higher cost overall (IEA 2021)
- Green ammonia from electrolytic hydrogen: Indian auctions at about $570-740/t (2025) against grey around $515/t (Mar 2025)
- Efficiency upgrades of old plants: India's 27 of 33 urea units are over 25 years old
- N2O abatement catalysts in downstream nitric acid plants
- Use efficiency on farms to cut total ammonia demand
India
India's ammonia, almost all for urea, is gas and LNG based and relatively efficient; India accounted for 14.7% of world fertiliser-N emissions (165.5 Mt CO2e in 2018), mostly from field use (Menegat et al. 2022). The SECI auction makes India one of the first places where green ammonia is bought at scale.
Emission figures are indicative global averages from the life-cycle studies named; actual footprints vary widely by site, energy mix and method.Low-carbon routes
| Route | Intensity | Cost premium | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Green ammonia (renewable hydrogen) | under 0.5 t CO2e per t (indicative) | about 10-45% over grey ammonia at $515/t (Mar 2025) across the SECI price range of Rs 49.75-64.74/kg; about 15% for the Rs 51.8/kg award | SECI 724 kt a year contracted (2025); NEOM about 1.2 Mt a year (indicative); AM Green Kakinada (indicative) | SECI via ESMAP (2025); pv magazine India (2025) |
| Blue ammonia (ATR + CCS) | about 0.5-1.0 t CO2e per t (indicative) | 10-100% range for low-carbon routes (IEA 2021) | CF/JERA/Mitsui Blue Point (Louisiana), civil works 2026 | CF Industries 2025 results; IEA (2021) |