Clariant announced that its MegaMax catalyst was selected for a China’s biomass gasification-to-green methanol project. The plant will use a combination of farm waste and wind power to produce up to 250,000 tons per annum of green methanol in two phases by 2027. Construction of the first plant phase began in March 2024, with production expected to start in the first half of 2025, marking China’s first commercialized biomass gasification-to-green methanol plant.

Green methanol is poised to play a crucial role as a renewable fuel and as a feedstock for green chemical production, serving as a C1 building block for base chemicals like formaldehyde and as a precursor for processes such as methanol-to-olefins (MTO) and methanol-to-propylene (MTP). Additionally, methanol is increasingly used in the energy sector, contributing to fuel blending, ship fuel, methanol-to-gasoline (MTG), power-to-methanol (PTM), and other sustainability-focused projects.

Clariant’s MegaMax catalysts are high-performance solutions for methanol synthesis from synthesis gas (a mix of hydrogen, carbon monoxide, and carbon dioxide), offering enhanced stability, outstanding activity, even at very low reactor temperatures and pressures, extended catalysts life, and tolerance to system fluctuations. They maximize methanol yield, and minimize by-products, significantly boosting the economics of green methanol production.

• Clariant AG, Muttenz, Switzerland