India has authorized the application of ammonia in agriculture to reduce urea imports.

According to the official notification dated July 23, the production of "anhydrous ammonia" with a nitrogen content of at least 82% by weight has been authorized in India. The validity of the permit, issued under the 1985 Fertilizer Control Order, is three years. The initiative aims to address the issue of high demand and limited supply of urea, which contains 46% nitrogen.

If successfully implemented, India will become the fourth country in the world, alongside the USA, Canada, and Australia, to apply ammonia directly in field conditions. The main technological challenge lies in the need to inject the gas into the soil, which requires the creation of specialized infrastructure. Industry experts point to the high risks associated with potential gas leaks during transportation and application, which casts doubt on the project's attractiveness for existing urea manufacturers.

Trials of the new fertilizer are being conducted at 13 institutes of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR). Preliminary field tests conducted during the 2026 rabi season on direct-seeded rice showed an increase in biomass and improved plant color. However, scientists noted uneven crop growth caused by difficulties in ammonia application. Widespread adoption of the technology requires standardization of the application methodology, especially for flooded crops such as rice and corn, as well as the determination of time intervals between treatment and soil preparation.

To date, many Indian plants annually produce between 2,000 and 6,000 tons of surplus ammonia, which is directed to the needs of complex fertilizer production. In parallel, the government is working on issues related to the production of "green" urea. A pilot plant with a capacity of 150 tons per day is planned to be launched in Andhra Pradesh, which will integrate carbon capture systems with water electrolysis. Given that the annual production of 12.7 lakh tons of urea requires about 10 lakh tons of CO₂, the demand for industrial carbon dioxide emissions remains a key factor for the development of this industry.