For Yara, a company associated with agriculture for several decades, climate change was a truth that hit home quite early. Sometime in the late 1990s, the company found growing evidence that the fertiliser industry’s nitric acid plants were major emitters of N2O or nitrous oxide which has more than 300 times the greenhouse effect of CO2. A pioneer in producing mineral fertilisers, Yara specialised in nitrogen-based fertilisers and felt that it needed to be a part of the solution rather than the problem.
This led to a chain of events that has put Yara among the list of companies dealing with climate change in innovative and sustainable ways. Besides, as a leading chemical company, Yara wields a lot of influence in the industry. Therefore its advocacy has ensured that the impact of its efforts is multiplied.
Years of researching the environment helped Yara develop several products, among which the best known is a breakthrough technology that helps clean up the nitric acid manufacturing process and is currently being used in nearly 50 per cent of the clean development mechanism (CDM) projects in the fertiliser sector, worldwide.
The company expects to develop many more such environmental solutions. In a statement that CEO and president, Jorgen Ole Haslestad, made in the 2009 annual review, he said: “Our environmental solutions will continue to grow in 2009 and onward.”
Green growth
For Yara, it was clear for a long time that the company has to grow without harming the environment. It needed a long-term growth strategy in place. Former CEO of the company, Thorleif Enger, in the annual review for the previous year, said: “It makes sound business logic for Yara to take part in combating global warming and to contribute to a more sustainable development.
We are demonstrating this commitment on many levels: On the production side, we are making progress in reducing climate gas emissions from our manufacturing plants by 25 per cent by 2009 compared to our 2004 level; through an R&D endeavour we have successfully developed and installed breakthrough catalyst technology that reduces nitrous oxide emissions from our nitric acid plants, and we have made it commercially available; moreover, we are introducing local initiatives like the migration of the company car fleet to low-emission vehicles.”
Yara set itself a target of 25 per cent reduction in emissions from its plants by 2009, a figure it is all set to meet. From CO2 emissions of close to 20 million tonnes in 2004, the company has managed to cut it down to 15 million tonnes in 2009. Its goal is to be one of the most energy-efficient companies in the industry someday soon.
The core of Yara’s operations is the production and sales of nitrogen-based fertilisers. It can produce up to eight million tonnes of ammonia per year. Its production capacities are spread over diverse locations and its portfolio of plant nutrition products is fairly large. This gives Yara a position of leadership which it says it will utilise to bring about greater awareness within its industry of the need to change the way it operates. The company expects that it will soon be able to apply the same principles that it does for its factories and operations to other companies and even other industries.
Clean solutions
Yara focused on climate change in the 90s when it became clear that the fertiliser industry’s nitric acid plants were major emitters of N2O. It set to work on a solution that would cut down the emissions steadily over a period of time and came up with an abatement solution that reduces nitrous oxide emissions by 70-90 per cent.
This product is an industry bestseller. The technology was developed at a cost of over NOK 100 million and after more than a decade of research and development. The United Nations has accepted it for use in Clean Development Mechanism and Joint Implementation projects to help countries meet Kyoto targets.
Yara describes it as a catalyst which is “a honeycombed pellet based on cobalt and cerium oxide”. It works by breaking down N2O in the first stage burner of a nitric acid plant; the resulting component can be used in production. This, the company believes, “is an added advantage over systems that try to clear or eradicate GHGs at the end of the production process. The pellets have an expected minimum lifetime of three years, are cost-effective and simple to deploy.”
The N2O abatement solution is just one the many environmental products being developed at Yara. It also has two products that help clean the atmosphere: NOXCare and Air1. These are urea and ammonia solutions that remove NOx by transforming it into - harmless nitrogen and water. Both NOXCare and Air1 are being used by fleet owners, oil companies, harbours, power plants, cement manufacturers and waste incinerators.
Yara is now working towards taking its NOX reduction solution to the maritime industry. It has tied up with Wilh. Wilhelmsen in a joint venture called Yarwil which aims to develop an emission-free fleet in the near future.
The company has also developed a solution for toxic gas abatement in wastewater systems called Nutriox. It removes hydrogen sulphide (H2S), a highly toxic, odorous and corrosive gas formed in wastewater systems and is used in water-treatment plants, municipalities, dairies, slaughter houses, breweries and in the pulp and paper industry. A similar product called PetroCare helps prevent the formation of hydrogen sulphide in oil fields.
Expanding orbit of influence
For Yara, climate change abatement strategies have to be global in scope and outlook. Given the nature of the problem, the company believes that it must work towards influencing others to join the cause. Its leadership position within the chemical fertiliser industry provides it with an appropriate platform for the purpose.
The company, has for instance, chosen to work with agriculturists in Africa, one of its oldest and largest markets. The company’s stated position on climate change mentioned on its website is: “The consequences of climate change on agricultural production and food security is an issue of critical importance for Yara in its capacity as the leading global provider of mineral fertilisers.”
According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the production of fertiliser alone uses about 1.2 per cent of world energy consumption, and is responsible for about 1.2 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions, totalling 500 million tonnes every year.
Yara contributes to global warming through its extensive use of fossil fuels and emissions of greenhouse gases during production of mineral fertilisers. However, by implementing energy-efficiency methods and pursuing innovative technologies it has “reduced its emissions, setting new standards for the fertiliser industry.”
Ongoing research at Yara is focused on ways to reduce emissions, improve efficiency of water use and develop sustainable agriculture. However, to really push the development and implementation of clean technology there still remains a lot to be done. Former CEO Thorleif Enger said during the company’s annual review last year: “We need stronger dialogue and cooperation and I firmly believe in the efficacy of incentive schemes that reward environmental leadership and penalise environmental laggards.” As the Copenhagen climate meet draws near, voices such as his are bound to get louder.