This paper outlines some of the considerations such as evaluating the costs and requirements to produce CO2 for the markets, and understand the downstream requirements and costs surrounding direct sales to the markets. Of course, there is a huge difference between selling prices of a delivered merchant product; and the price to a refiner or gas company for a raw gas. With a full evaluation of markets; along with plant and operating costs and requirements understood – then weighing this against raw gas sales, which usually will have to be negotiated up from the initial offer – will yield a sense of which direction one should take. One consideration today, is to understand the merchant CO2 industry is supplied by a very few, very large gas corporations, and there is an opportunity to look at direct sales to the markets, unlike any time in recent decades. Practically all of the major independents in the CO2 industry have been acquired by the majors, so there is room for new parties to enter the industry.
There are niche settings, or markets which are not served well by local production, or lack local production. These are excellent examples of such opportunities, which an ammonia project could capitalize on when marketing the CO2 directly to the consumers, and sometimes they can literally make a fortune. The first step is understanding in depth the feasibility behind the direct market for the CO2, or wholesale – raw gas options.