Praxair to supply Yara/BASF ammonia plant in Texas, signs 20-year deal

(Adds information on Praxair’s supply deal with Yara/BASF for ammonia plant)

LONDON (ICIS)–Yara and BASF have chosen Praxair as the supplier of hydrogen and nitrogen for their 750,000 tonne/year ammonia plant in Freeport, Texas, the Connecticut-based industrial gases firm said on Thursday.

Praxair said the deal will see it during 20 years providing approximately 170m standard cubic feet per day of hydrogen and 2,000 tonnes/day of nitrogen to the joint venture formed by Yara and BASF.

Earlier on Thursday, Norwegian fertilizer firm Yara and German chemical major BASF announced plans to build the ammonia plant in Texas on the back of current lower feedstock prices in the US.

Financial details of the contract were not disclosed. Praxair said it will invest more than $400m to add hydrogen and nitrogen capacity at its Gulf Coast pipeline systems, near Freeport. The expansion is expected to start operating in 2016, and Praxair will start supplying Yara and BASF’s plant in 2017, it said.

“Praxair’s ability to capture and process by-product hydrogen generated by multiple crackers that are being installed in the Gulf Coast and add this product to the hydrogen produced by our on-purpose steam methane reformer facilities to reliably deliver high-purity hydrogen was critical for this award. We are excited to be a part of this project and to be working alongside Yara and BASF,” said Eduardo Menezes, executive vice president, Praxair.