More than a century ago, European innovators transformed how we produce fertilizers. Norway’s Birkeland–Eyde process used electricity to fix nitrogen from the air. In Germany, the Haber-Bosch and Ostwald innovations helped overcome dependence on imported mineral nitrogen and laid the foundations of modern agriculture.
The fertilizer system that emerged is helping to feed about half of humanity. Yet it is also increasingly dependent on fossil gas. Since 2022, EU nitrogen fertilizer production has fallen by around 12%, while imports from Egypt, Russia, and Algeria – where gas is cheaper and abundant – have increased.
Our new report explores the technologies for Europe’s next fertilizer innovation cycle. Lead authors, James Lazenby and Friedrich Schubert, examine three promising electricity-based pathways:
- renewable hydrogen with upgraded Haber-Bosch
- plasma-based nitrogen fixation
- electrochemical ammonia synthesis.
Europe is well placed to lead. It developed the major industrial nitrogen technologies of the last century. Today it can revolutionize fertilizer production again. It hosts more innovators working on emerging low-emission nitrogen production technologies than any other region in the world.