As part of its commitment to reduce its scope 3 emissions by 10% by 2030 and to reduce the lifecycle carbon intensity of ammonia production, CF Industries Holdings, Inc. announced that it has entered into an agreement with bp for the supply of 2.2 billion cubic feet (BCF) of certified natural gas in 2023.
MiQ-certified natural gas, or certified gas, is produced by companies whose operations are independently verified by a third-party auditor. These third parties provide a factual assessment of methane emissions intensity – the ratio of methane emissions to natural gas produced. CF Industries uses natural gas as a feedstock in the production of ammonia. Methane emissions throughout the natural gas supply chain are a significant contributor to the lifecycle carbon intensity of ammonia production and one of the two largest sources of scope 3 emissions for the Company.
The natural gas is certified using not-for-profit MiQ’s methane standard, which leverages independent third-party auditors to monitor, address, and grade the natural gas used in ammonia production. The Company will use the highest level of certified gas available, or ‘A’ grade, which – when compared to industry production averages (GREET, 2022) – lowers the methane emissions associated with the natural gas purchased by around 90%. This is the first known purchase of certified gas by an industrial company for use in its ammonia production processes.
“CF Industries is the first industrial giant to use MiQ-independently certified natural gas to significantly reduce scope 3 emissions from its production processes,” said Georges Tijbosch, CEO, MiQ.
A recent white paper published by MiQ estimates that using ‘A’ grade certified natural gas as a feedstock in ammonia production would lower a purchaser’s natural gas supply chain-related scope 3 emissions by 90% and reduce the lifecycle carbon intensity by up to 20% using a 100yr global warming potential (GWP). The use of certified natural gas alongside carbon capture and sequestration processes at ammonia plants could eliminate up to 94% of greenhouse gas emissions associated with ammonia production, according to MIQ.
SOURCE: PR Newswire