• First major company in the crop nutrition sector to commit to reduce emissions to zero by 2035, using science-based-targets
• It plans to lead the development of Europe’s green ammonia market
• It establishes partnerships with Europe’s leading energy companies to expedite its projects based on green hydrogen and the use of renewable energy at its production site

Grupo Fertiberia announces its most ambitious investment plan to date aiming to reduce emissions from its industrial activity to zero before 2035 using science-based targets, and to lead the development of Europe’s green ammonia market. The production method sees the compound obtained by replacing natural gas with hydrogen coming from renewable electricity and it serves as the basis for producing crop nutrition solutions and products with a zero-carbon footprint, in addition to other environmental solutions for reducing emissions in the industry. Grupo Fertiberia thus becomes the first major company in the sector to commit to being carbon neutral in the next decade and it strengthens its position in the development of products with a high added value.

The plan, known as Net Zero, is firstly based on the partnerships that Grupo Fertiberia has forged with European leaders in the energy market so that its main industrial centres in Spain are part of the main consortiums involved in developing green hydrogen in the Iberian Peninsula

These initiatives make it possible for the company to lead the development of the market with the greatest growth and profitability in the crop nutrition sector. They also reinforce the EU’s energy sovereignty by replacing natural gas with local renewable energy sources.

According to the International Energy Agency, the demand for crop nutrition products developed from green ammonia is anticipated to grow by 40% pa until 2050. “The world is expected to require greater production with fewer emissions, which is why our company is now preparing for the future of this market”, emphasises Javier Goñi, president of Group Fertiberia. Moreover, new markets are opening up for the company. To date, ammonia has been essentially used for producing crop nutrition and industrial products to reduce emissions in other industries. Now, green ammonia has also become the fuel with the greatest potential to decarbonise the maritime transport sector, which thus enhances the ability of Grupo Fertiberia’s products to lower greenhouse gas emissions. “Our major industrial centres are in strategic areas for maritime traffic, which opens up a market with enormous potential”.

In addition to developing new green ammonia production capacities, Grupo Fertiberia expects to further reduce emissions to zero by using its own renewable energy in its installations. The company also plans a progressive change to the raw material purchase policy to ensure that no emissions have been generated during the production of said materials.

“We successfully reduced Grupo Fertiberia’s greenhouse gas emissions by more than 63% between 2010 and 2020. For many years now, we have internalised our objective of permanently reducing the footprint of our activity, and now we are at the forefront of a profound transformation towards becoming the first major company in the sector that is committed to achieving the goal of ‘zero emissions’ before 2035”, says Goñi.

All investments for decarbonising the company’s operations are tied to the fulfilment of ambitious business objectives over the coming decade. More than 50% of the company’s revenue comes from its range of special products (smart crop nutrition that are tailored to the needs of each type of plant). The Net Zero challenge is to achieve 100% of the sales come from innovative and fully sustainable products.