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Search results for: โ€œfertilizerโ€

  • Crop production: how much does nitrogen fertilizer increase yields?

    Crop production: how much does nitrogen fertilizer increase yields?

    How much does fertilizer increase crop yields? Aggregating all of the global data, a good rule of thumb is that up to 200kg of nitrogen can be applied per acre, increasing corn crop yields from 60 bushels per acre (with no fertilizer) to 160 bushels per acre (at 200 kg/acre). But the relationship is logarithmic,…

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  • Screen of Large Public Fertilizer Companies

    Screen of Large Public Fertilizer Companies

    This data-file screens the large, listed fertilizer companies, comparing their CO2 intensity, ROACE, cash flow and recent patent filings.ย The industry could be disrupted by the rise of conservation agriculture, eroding thee 186MTpa global fertilizer market, which also comprises c1% of global emissions.ย 

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  • Restoring soil carbon: the economics?

    Restoring soil carbon: the economics?

    We model the economics for conservation agriculture to restore soil carbon. 5-30T of CO2 can be sequestered per acre per year, while deflating farm costs by 36-73% and raising yields 10-20%. This would transform crop-growing economics from marginal to material.

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  • Sulphur recovery units: Claus process economics?

    Sulphur recovery units: Claus process economics?

    This data-file captures the economics of producing sulphur from H2S via the Claus process, yielding an important input for phosphate fertilizers and metals. Cash costs are $40-60/ton and marginal costs are $100/ton. CO2 intensity is low at 0.1 tons/ton. Data-file explores shortages in energy transition?

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  • Global hydrogen: market breakdown?

    Global hydrogen: market breakdown?

    This data-file is a global hydrogen market breakdown, disaggregating the 110MTpa market (mainly ammonia, methanol and refining), how it is met via different production technologies, and our estimates of those technologies’ costs (in $/kg) and CO2 intensities (in kg/kg or tons/ton).

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  • Biogas: the economics?

    Biogas: the economics?

    Biogas costs are broken down in this economic model, generating a 10% IRR off $180M/kboed capex, via a mixture of $16/mcfe gas sales, $60/ton waste disposal fees and $50/ton CO2 prices. High gas prices and landfill taxes can make biogas economical in select geographies. Although diseconomies of scale reward smaller projects?

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  • Conservation agriculture: farming carbon into soils?

    Conservation agriculture: farming carbon into soils?

    Conservation agriculture builds up carbon in soil. It can sequester 3-15 bn tons of CO2 per year, generating carbon credits, while restoring loss-making farmlands to exceptional profitability. Fertilizer demand would be decimated. This 17-page report outlines the opportunity, costs, CO2-removal, winners and losers.

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  • Ammonia: production costs and energy economics?

    Ammonia: production costs and energy economics?

    This data-file captures ammonia production costs and energy economics, starting from inputs of hydrogen and nitrogen, using the Haber process. Our base case is $450/ton NH3 and 2.4 tons/ton CO2 intensity. This matters as fertilizer production thus explains over 1% of global emissions.

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  • Urea production: the economics

    Urea production: the economics

    This data-file captures the economics of producing urea, an important fertilizer and intermediate material. We estimate a marginal cost of $325/ton, based on $2/mcf-e energy inputs. CO2 intensity is 1.5 tons/ton. But costs will increase well above $800/ton during times of energy shortages.

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  • CO2 offsets: Pachama’s AI platform?

    CO2 offsets: Pachama’s AI platform?

    Pachama is a nature-based technology company, which has raised $79M, to create a portal where buyers can choose “from rigorously vetted forest restoration and conservation projects”, which in turn are tracked using proprietary AI. This data-file evaluates Pachama’s portfolio and our own experiences, using our usual framework for assessing nature-based CO2 removals.

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