Turkmens Commission $1.6bn Fertiliser Plant
Turkmenistan announced September 17 it has commissioned a $1.57bn fertiliser plant in the Caspian coastal city of Garabogaz.
The Garabogazkarbamid plant was developed by the state-run Turkmenhimiya chemicals producer, Japan’s Mitsubishi Corp and Turkish Calik Group-owned builder Gap Insaat under a 2014 agreement, with construction beginning later that year. It was scheduled to start up June 2018, then delayed, and its budget cost $1.3bn increased by 21% to $1.57bn. Japan Bank of International Cooperation (JBIC) led a $1.16bn syndicated loan that financed the venture. The plant has now been opened by Turkmen president Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov.
It is designed to convert about 1bn m3/yr natural gas to 0.66mn mt/yr of synthetic ammonia and 1.155mn mt/yr of urea fertiliser; the complex also includes a gas-fired 50 MW power plant. Danish firm Haldor Topsoe’s technology was used for the ammonia production, while the urea synthesis workshop used Saipem technology, and Japan’s Yokohama ensured the plant’s full automation.
Haldor Topsoe said last week noted that its ammonia and methanol technology was used at a Russian plant in the Tula region that started production last week.
Turkmenistan is also commissioning a $1.7bn gas-to-liquids (GTL) plant in Ovan-Depe which it expects to be operational in December 2018, following a contract signed in 2015 between state-run Turkmengaz and a consortium of Japan's Kawasaki Heavy Industries and Turkish conglomerate Ronesans. It will process up to 2bn m3/yr feedstock gas into synthetic gasoline, again based on Haldor Topsoe technology.
Turkmenistan was the world's 12th largest gas producer in the world in 2017. Its production is forecast to increase by 27% to 102bn m3/yr in 2030 and reach 141bn m3/yr in 2040, according to the International Energy Agency. But the Caspian nation stopped gas export to Russia and Iran in recent years and now only delivers gas to China and a restricted amount to Azerbaijan (swapping with Iran). It has since focused on gas-fired power, petrochemicals, GTL and other export-focused products. In the longer run, Turkmenistan is eying exports to Afghanistan, Pakistan and India via the Tapi pipeline project, and also exports to Europe beneath the Caspian – but neither will be a walk in the park because of financial, political and (in Tapi’s case) security hurdles.