Who buys ammonia in India?

DAP, NP and NPK and phosphoric acid producers with their own refrigerated import terminals, and industrial users of nitric acid and technical ammonium nitrate. Six of the largest, among them IFFCO, Paradeep Phosphates, Coromandel, GSFC and FACT, tendered together through Indian Potash Limited in May 2026. CBIL quotes named private receivers and does not bid in government or state-enterprise tenders.

How is ammonia priced into India?

Term supply is priced by formula: the average of a published Middle East FOB assessment over the weeks before loading, plus an agreed premium or discount and freight. Spot cargoes are offered at a fixed CFR price. In the May 2026 tender some sellers offered fixed prices and others a formula.

What parcel size and ship does a terminal take?

A southern plant with one tank takes about 8,000 t at a time; the east-coast complexes take 15,000 to 30,000 t. The ship is a fully refrigerated gas carrier sized to the jetty draft and the tank space on arrival, and the terminal's manifold, flange rating and vapour-return arrangement are checked before the ship is nominated.

Which origins are loading for India now?

Oman, at Sohar and Salalah outside the strait, which was already the largest supplier. Indonesia, Malaysia and Australia to the east; Algeria through the Suez Canal; and Trinidad and the US Gulf on the long haul. Each offer names the producer and load port.

Can CBIL also fix the ship?

Yes. Our chartering desk, LaycanDesk, prices refrigerated gas carriers for ammonia, so a CFR and an FOB figure can be shown side by side.

Indian Ocean · India

Anhydrous Ammonia Suppliers CFR India (Paradip, Kakinada, Kandla)

The largest seaborne ammonia buyer, tendering jointly since May 2026 and offered less than half of what it asked for

India declared 2,569,500 t of anhydrous ammonia imports in 2025 at a landed value of USD 1.03 billion, about USD 401 per tonne, after about 2.39 million t in 2024. Oman supplied 1.0 million t (39%), Saudi Arabia 921,000 t (36%), Indonesia 9%, Qatar 5%, Malaysia 4% and Australia 2%, so 43% came from inside the Gulf; before the restriction the region shipped more than 300,000 t a month to India. The Strait of Hormuz has been severely restricted since 28 February 2026: loadings inside the Gulf move irregularly and are confirmed cargo by cargo. The buyers are phosphate and complex-fertiliser makers with refrigerated tanks at their own jetties: at Paradip and Kakinada on the east coast, at Kandla, Sikka and the Mumbai area on the west coast, and at Kochi, Mangalore and Tuticorin in the south. In May 2026 Indian Potash Limited ran a consortium tender for six of them, together about 90% of the country's seaborne ammonia buying, for 536,000 t over June to August: about 370,000 t for the east coast and 166,000 t for the west. Offers came to 239,000 t, at USD 890 to 1,030 per tonne CFR. Delivered values had been about USD 850 in late April and eased to about USD 760 by late June. Customs duty on anhydrous ammonia was set at nil from 2 April 2026 and the exemption was extended to 15 July 2026; an importer should confirm the rate in force for its bill of entry.

Ammonia moves at minus 33 °C in fully refrigerated gas carriers. Parcels into India run from about 8,000 t for a single southern plant to 15,000-30,000 t for the large east-coast complexes, and the jetty draft at each terminal sets the ship: Sikka, for example, takes carriers to about 33,000 DWT. Term contracts price against the Middle East FOB assessment plus a freight differential; spot cargoes are fixed CFR. CBIL brokers anhydrous ammonia (99.5% min, water 0.2-0.5%, oil 5 ppm max) from Sohar and Salalah in Oman, Arzew in Algeria, Point Lisas in Trinidad and the US Gulf, with inspection at load and the producer named before any offer. CBIL does not bid in government or state-enterprise tenders. A receiver that states its terminal, parcel size, laycan and LC-opening bank gets a firm answer; one without them gets a question first.

Need the ship as well? Our chartering desk prices LPG and ammonia gas carrier chartering on LaycanDesk.

The market in figures

Declared imports: 2025: 2,569,500 t, USD 1.03 billion, USD 401/t · 2024: about 2.39 Mt
Origins, 2025: Oman 39% · Saudi Arabia 36% · Indonesia 9% · Qatar 5% · Malaysia 4% · Australia 2%
Share from inside the Gulf: 43% (about 91,000 t a month to replace)
May 2026 consortium tender: 536,000 t sought for June-August (east coast 370,000 t, west coast 166,000 t) · 239,000 t offered at USD 890-1,030/t CFR
2026 delivered values: About USD 850/t in late April · about USD 760/t in late June
Receiving terminals: Paradip, Kakinada, Visakhapatnam · Kandla, Sikka, Mumbai area · Kochi, Mangalore, Tuticorin

Landed values are the importing country's declared CIF, not CBIL prices.

Questions buyers ask

Who buys ammonia in India?: DAP, NP and NPK and phosphoric acid producers with their own refrigerated import terminals, and industrial users of nitric acid and technical ammonium nitrate. Six of the largest, among them IFFCO, Paradeep Phosphates, Coromandel, GSFC and FACT, tendered together through Indian Potash Limited in May 2026. CBIL quotes named private receivers and does not bid in government or state-enterprise tenders.
How is ammonia priced into India?: Term supply is priced by formula: the average of a published Middle East FOB assessment over the weeks before loading, plus an agreed premium or discount and freight. Spot cargoes are offered at a fixed CFR price. In the May 2026 tender some sellers offered fixed prices and others a formula.
What parcel size and ship does a terminal take?: A southern plant with one tank takes about 8,000 t at a time; the east-coast complexes take 15,000 to 30,000 t. The ship is a fully refrigerated gas carrier sized to the jetty draft and the tank space on arrival, and the terminal's manifold, flange rating and vapour-return arrangement are checked before the ship is nominated.
Which origins are loading for India now?: Oman, at Sohar and Salalah outside the strait, which was already the largest supplier. Indonesia, Malaysia and Australia to the east; Algeria through the Suez Canal; and Trinidad and the US Gulf on the long haul. Each offer names the producer and load port.
Can CBIL also fix the ship?: Yes. Our chartering desk, LaycanDesk, prices refrigerated gas carriers for ammonia, so a CFR and an FOB figure can be shown side by side.