# Refining catalysts: Trading

Why refiners test catalysts in their own units first

Source page: https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/refining_catalysts/trading/

What this tab covers How it is bought and sold: buyers and sellers, price benchmarks and who publishes them, exchanges, contract types, traders, how Indian buyers price it, recent price points, and good sources to follow.

#### Who buys, and where

- Refiners buy direct from suppliers on multi-year supply agreements after unit trials
- Indian refiners (IOCL, BPCL, HPCL, Reliance, Nayara) tender for FCC and hydroprocessing catalyst

#### Who sells, and from where

- Grace, BASF and Ketjen sell FCC catalyst worldwide from US and European plants
- Topsoe, Axens, ART, Shell Catalysts and Technologies and Ketjen sell hydroprocessing catalysts

#### Price benchmarks

| Benchmark | Publisher | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| **No published catalyst price benchmark** |  | prices are confidential and performance-based |

#### Exchanges

| Venue | Contract | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| **None** | not exchange-traded | Metal inputs (molybdenum, nickel, cobalt) have their own reference prices |

#### Contract types

- Multi-year FCC supply contracts with metal surcharges
- Reload tenders for hydroprocessing units
- Technology licences bundled with first catalyst fill
- Spent catalyst regeneration and metal reclamation contracts

#### Traders and distributors

- Not a traded market; spent-catalyst metal reclaimers act as buyers of spent material

#### How Indian buyers price it

- Tendered by refiners; landed cost is supplier price plus basic customs duty and GST
- No Indian benchmark price

#### Recent price points

| Date | Price | Basis | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | **not published** | supplier contracts |  |

#### Good sources to follow
[Topsoe financial releases](https://www.topsoe.com/financial-releases/topsoe-reports-satisfactory-financial-results-for-2025-in-a-challenging-market)free research site · Topsoe

catalyst and technology revenue, renewable fuels
[Albemarle news releases](https://www.albemarle.com/au/en/news/albemarle-reports-fourth-quarter-and-full-year-2025-results)free research site · Albemarle

Ketjen results to 2025 and equity income after
[Policy Risk supply map: FCC catalysts](https://policyrisk.com/supplymap/input/fcc-catalysts)free research site · policyrisk.com

supplier and country concentration (secondary)

## Other sections

- [Summary](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/refining_catalysts/index.md)
- [Overview](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/refining_catalysts/overview/index.md)
- [Correlation](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/refining_catalysts/correlation/index.md)
- [Production route](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/refining_catalysts/routes/index.md)
- [Production](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/refining_catalysts/production/index.md)
- [Feedstocks](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/refining_catalysts/feedstocks/index.md)
- [Cycles](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/refining_catalysts/cycles/index.md)
- [Movement](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/refining_catalysts/movement/index.md)
- [Regulation](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/refining_catalysts/regulation/index.md)
- [Characteristics](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/refining_catalysts/characteristics/index.md)
- [Emissions](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/refining_catalysts/emissions/index.md)
- [Relationships](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/refining_catalysts/links/index.md)