Carbon Dioxide Production in Australia: Market Size, Businesses & Forecast 2026

The carbon dioxide production industry in Australia involves the manufacture, purification, and distribution of commercial-grade carbon dioxide in compressed, liquid, or solid forms for industrial, food, beverage, and medical applications. The sector relies primarily on capturing gas by-products from natural gas conditioning plants, chemical manufacturing, and petroleum refining, channeling them into local supply chains. The market is moving toward local manufacturing supply security, underscored by major infrastructure updates such as the establishment of a merchant facility in Victoria engineered for an annual capacity of over 60,000 tonnes of beverage-grade liquid CO2 starting operational

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What does the Carbon Dioxide Production in Australia industry cover?

The carbon dioxide production industry comprises entities engaged in manufacturing industrial organic and inorganic gases, including carbon dioxide, in compressed, liquid, or solid (dry ice) formats. Under official standard classifications, these units process raw chemical gas streams or recover carbon dioxide from industrial processes to meet stringent regulatory purities required by commercial sectors. The scope excludes companies primarily engaged in wholesale merchant distribution without direct manufacturing or purification facilities.

• •Classified under the Australian and New Zealand Standard Industrial Classification (ANZSIC) code 1811 for Industrial Gas Manufacturing.
• •Primary outputs include industrial-grade compressed CO2, anaerobic-grade gas for biological cultivation, and food-grade liquefied CO2.
• •Excludes units engaged in petroleum refining (ANZSIC 1701) or standard pesticide manufacturing (ANZSIC 1832).

Who operates in the industry and how is it structured?

The Australian market for commercial carbon dioxide is highly consolidated, dominated by a small number of multinational industrial gas corporations with established domestic production facilities. These operators secure long-term supply agreements with primary emitters, such as petrochemical refineries and oil or gas extraction facilities, to capture raw waste streams. Production plants are strategically located near heavy industrial clusters or major transport hubs to minimize specialized distribution costs across long distances.

• •Major facilities operate via direct supply partnerships, such as the strategic processing agreement at the Longford Gas Conditioning Plant.
• •The supply network relies heavily on centralized liquefaction units and specialized bulk cryogenic tankers to transport liquid CO2.
• •Industrial gas suppliers offer localized distribution networks spanning major economic capitals including Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, and Perth.

What drives demand in the industry?

Demand for carbon dioxide in Australia is driven by diverse application requirements across consumer staples, industrial manufacturing, and environmental management sectors. A primary demand source is the food and beverage industry, which utilizes the gas for carbonation in soft drinks and beers, as well as for modified atmosphere packaging to extend food shelf life. Additionally, water treatment, industrial welding, chemical processing, and healthcare environments depend heavily on stable commercial carbon dioxide volumes.

• •Beverage hospitality lines use bulk post-mix and beer dispensing cylinders matching strict international purity metrics.
• •Water treatment utilities employ carbon dioxide for pH regulation and large-scale water desalination processes.
• •Manufacturing sectors utilize solid dry ice variants for specialized blast-cleaning and cryogenic transport cooling.

Who are the notable companies in the industry?

The competitive environment features intense rivalry among prominent international industrial gas groups that maintain expansive footprints across the Australian states. Companies differentiate themselves based on supply chain reliability, specialized engineering services, and compliance with high-purity standards. Strategic joint ventures with local resource extractors allow these players to secure bulk gas feedstock before processing it for downstream merchant sales.

• •BOC Limited (a subsidiary of global entity Linde plc) acts as a principal producer with significant local investments in Victoria and New South Wales.
• •Air Liquide Australia Limited operates extensive local manufacturing and marketing facilities supporting metal fabrication, health, and food sectors.
• •Coregas Pty Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Wesfarmers Limited, provides domestic manufacturing and competition in the industrial gas market.
• •Woodside Energy Group Ltd and Esso Australia Resources Pty Ltd influence the competitive landscape as key joint venture suppliers of raw CO2 gas streams.

What are the recent trends and outlook?

Recent developments highlight an emphasis on domestic manufacturing resilience to counter historical supply shortfalls and fluctuating industrial operation rates. The industry is modernizing through advanced purification facilities that repurpose waste carbon streams into high-value merchant products, aligning with corporate decarbonization objectives. Long-term trends indicate that as traditional natural gas use evolves, commercial gas captures will adapt to alternative industrial sources.

• •A major domestic milestone includes the construction of the South Pacific's largest merchant liquid CO2 plant with a 60,000-tonne annual capacity.
• •National focus has intensified around establishing localized supply partnerships to cushion commercial sectors against global import dependencies.
• •The shift towards carbon circularity is enabling resource extractors to mitigate emissions by transferring raw waste streams directly to gas purifiers.

How is the industry regulated?

Operators within the carbon dioxide production sphere must strictly navigate overlapping environmental, safety, and health standards enforced at both federal and state levels. Facilities emitting greenhouse gases or processing chemical materials are subject to formal tracking frameworks to monitor national industrial output. Furthermore, food-grade gas variants must conform to rigid international and domestic health standards to avoid public consumption risks.

• •Facilities fall under tracking guidelines governed by the National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting (NGER) scheme under the Clean Energy Regulator.
• •Industrial storage, high-pressure handling, and cylinder transport conform to dangerous goods regulations enforced by state work health and safety authorities.
• •Food and beverage grade carbon dioxide outputs are subject to international food-safety standards monitored for commercial certification.

Government, statistical and trade sources used for this Claight analysis.

• Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) ANZSIC 2006 ·
• Clean Energy Regulator - National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting (NGER) ·
• BOC Limited South Pacific Media and Industry Communications 2022