India is the second-largest fertiliser producer in the world (about 45 million tons produced in 2023), accounting for about 20% of global production
Fertilisers, a mainstay of any economy today, and more so for a agrarian-dependent economy like India, are a significant emitter of CO2 emissions. Emissions for the fertilizer industry happen from two fronts: One, from the use of energy during the production of hydrogen from natural and for the Haber process that combines hydrogen with nitrogen to produce ammonia. The other front from which CO2 emissions happen are as process emissions during hydrogen production, during which, the water-shift reaction of natural gas to produce hydrogen has an important by-product: CO2!
So, what are India’s total GHG emissions from the production of fertilizers?
All data for 2023.
Total GHG Emissions for India (CO2eq): 3.4 billion tons.
Total Fertilizer Industry Emissions:
- Total emissions: 25 million tons (CO2eq)
- Proportion of total GHG emissions: approx 0.75%
Hope this is useful.
If you have queries on this, please send a note to narsi@eai.in and I will try my best to help! – Narsi, EAI
Support data and other highlights
1%, about 25 million tons – https://www.ceew.in/publications/how-can-india-achieve-sustainable-fertilisers-production-and-reduce-carbon-emissions, also the analysis paper.
