Ammonia: Movement
Trinidad ships, Morocco buys for its phosphate plants
What this tab covers How it moves between countries: share of output traded, physical form and transport, the largest exporters and importers, main routes, India's trade, and handling rules in transit.Trade in 2024 UN Comtrade, HS 281410
World exports $5.87 bn 80 reporting exporters · about 12.7 m t Largest exporter Trinidad and Tobago 21.4% of world exports Largest importer Morocco 21.4% of world imports India imports $981.9 mexports $1.82 m #3 importer · #31 exporter
Where it is exported from and imported to, 2024
Chart: World map of the largest trade flows
Exporter (size = share of world exports) Importer (share of world imports) Shipping chokepoint UN Comtrade 2024, HS 281410: shares of reported world exports and imports by value. Country-to-country route lines are not available for this commodity yet. Hover a circle for values.HS 281410: largest exporters
| Country | Share | Value (US$) | Tonnes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trinidad and Tobago | 21.4% | $1.26 bn | 2.77 m |
| Saudi Arabia | 14.1% | $828.9 m | 2.19 m |
| Canada | 12.5% | $736.4 m | 1.08 m |
| Indonesia | 10.3% | $607.8 m | 1.71 m |
| Algeria | 7.4% | $432.4 m | 720k |
| United States | 5.6% | $328.8 m | 1.04 m |
| Netherlands | 4.7% | $273.7 m | 498k |
| Germany | 4.5% | $263.9 m | 477k |
HS 281410: largest importers
| Country | Share | Value (US$) | Tonnes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Morocco | 21.4% | $1.77 bn | 3.70 m |
| United States | 14.7% | $1.22 bn | 2.07 m |
| India | 11.9% | $981.9 m | – |
| South Korea | 5.9% | $488.7 m | – |
| Belgium | 4.5% | $374.3 m | 756k |
| Türkiye | 4.4% | $363.6 m | 797k |
| Norway | 3.3% | $273.6 m | 603k |
| France | 3.2% | $269.0 m | – |
How it moves
| Measure | Figure | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Share traded | about 8-10% of output (indicative, basis: reported exports of 12.7 Mt worth $5.87 billion in 2024 (UN Comtrade), plus non-reporters such as Russia, against 190.5 Mt) | ||
| How it moves | Refrigerated liquid at -33 C in fully refrigerated gas carriers; pressurised road and rail tankers; pipelines in the US Corn Belt and Russia (Togliatti-Odesa line shut since 2022, indicative). Most ammonia is converted on site because shipping it is costly and hazardous. | ||
| Routes and chokepoints | Caribbean to US Gulf and Morocco; Middle East Gulf to India, Morocco and East Asia through Hormuz; Indonesia to Korea, China and India; Algeria to Europe. Hormuz is the main chokepoint, as 2026 showed. | ||
| India | India imported $0.98 billion of ammonia in 2024 (11.9% of world value); Saudi Arabia shipped $300 million and Indonesia $86 million to India (Comtrade partner data). Exports were negligible ($2 million). | ||
| Handling in transit | UN1005, class 2.3 (toxic gas) with subsidiary 8 (corrosive). Toxic by inhalation at a few hundred ppm; requires refrigerated or pressurised containment and emergency plans at ports. |