The worldwide ammonia market has exhibited sustained growth between 2005 and 2013, except the years of the global economic recession (2008 and 2009), when the global ammonia output volume decreased remarkably. However, the world ammonia market recovered in 2010 and even exceeded the pre-crisis output figures.
In 2013, the global ammonia production registered a 2.7% YoY increase and climbed to 170.5 million tonnes. In the same year, the world ammonia capacity utilization rate stood at above 80%. APAC was the unrivalled leader in terms of ammonia production volume in 2013, accounting for over a half of the world ammonia output.
The top 5 ammonia producing countries in 2013 included China, Russia, India, the USA and Trinidad. Their combined share of the world ammonia production volume was equal to 60.83%.
Ammonia: structure of the global production by country, 2013
The global ammonia demand followed an upward trend from 2010 to 2013, and in 2013 exceeded 170.49 million tonnes. At present, most of the demand growth comes from the developing countries. The APAC region calls for over 53% of the world’s total ammonia demand. It is followed by Europe and North America, holding 21.6% and 11.6%, respectively. More than a half of the world’s total ammonia output is used in the urea production.
As for the global ammonia production capacity, it went beyond 212.5 million tonnes in 2013. APAC ranked first in the world in terms of ammonia production capacity, accounting for over 51% of the overall figure.
Ammonia: structure of the global production capacity by region, 2013
Stable growth trends are likely to be observed in the global ammonia market in ten years ahead. By 2018, the world ammonia production volume is anticipated to climb to 200.96 million tonnes mark. The growth is expected to be spurred by the scheduled ammonia capacity introductions worldwide and also by the steadily increasing demand.
More information on the ammonia market can be found in the topical research study “Ammonia 2014 World Market Outlook and Forecast up to 2018”.