Innovative renewable power–to-fertilizer plant will be built in Kenya

A new fertilizer plant will be built at the Oserian Two lakes Industrial Park located nearby Nairobi, Kenya. Construction of the plant will be handled by Oserian Development Company with MET Development, Stamicarbon and NextChem (all subsidiaries of Maire Tecnimont Group) responsible for construction and engineering.

The renewable power-to-fertilizer plant will support Kenya’s low carbon and inclusive growth, its agricultural output and its smallholder farmers and communities. The plant will be located near the country’s largest geothermal energy basin and will be partly powered by solar energy sources produced on-site. That would eliminate the need for fossil fuels and allow the production with zero carbon zero emissions. The project will also reduce the country’s dependency on imported nitrogen fertilizers.

The new initiative targets to produce 550 metric tons per day of Calcium Ammonium Nitrate  and/or NPK fertilizers and will be the first state-of-the-art, commercial-scale nitrate fertilizer plant from renewables. Commercial operation of the new plant may start in 2025. The project will utilize approximately 70 MW of renewable power, will create the starting point for locally produced Kenyan fertilizer and is expected to directly generate over one hundred jobs in the region while supporting the broader economy and its farmers.

“With this strategic initiative, we aim to unlock the potential of decarbonizing the fertilizer industry using renewable energy as a feedstock. Kenya has a unique potential to provide renewable energy, making it an ideal location for local green power-to-fertilizer production, replacing the import of nitrogen fertilizer. With this first very promising initiative we confirm our expertise in project development in green energy, by acting as an end-to-end developer and technological integrator capable of connecting the key factors which are necessary to industrialize the green economy globally,” said Pierroberto Folgiero, CEO of Maire Tecnimont Group, commenting on the new development.

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The project will rely on Stamicarbon Green Ammonia Technology that is a solution to tackle the global carbon challenge. The technology relies on renewable resources, instead of fossil fuels, to eliminate carbon from the process, paving the way for sustainable and green fertilizer production. It is a CAPEX competitive technology, offering a solid reference base (with 4 plants in operation), reliability and proven design.