Linde

What Linde does

Linde plc is the world's largest industrial gases and engineering company, supplying atmospheric gases (oxygen, nitrogen, argon), hydrogen, helium, and specialty gases to customers across more than 80 countries. The company operates over 1,000 production facilities globally, including air separation units (ASUs), hydrogen production assets (electrolysis for green hydrogen and autothermal reforming with carbon capture for blue hydrogen), and proprietary carbon capture technology branded as HISORP CC. Its engineering division builds, owns and operates on-site gas production plants at customer sites, complemented by advanced material technologies (metal powders, surface coatings, sputtering targets) for semiconductor and aerospace customers.

The business model is anchored by long-term take-or-pay contracts typically spanning 10-20 years with enterprise customers in electronics, healthcare, manufacturing, chemicals, energy, and metals & mining. On-site supply arrangements, merchant liquid deliveries, pipeline networks (notably the U.S. Gulf Coast), and packaged gas distribution form a multi-channel go-to-market. Pricing achieved 2% attainment in Q1 2026, with margins supported by scale economies and operational efficiency (30% operating margin, 24% return on capital).

Linde's customer roster includes SpaceX (supplier of approximately 70% of liquid oxygen for launches), Samsung, Intel, TSMC, Dow Chemical, OCI, Tata Steel, Heidelberg Materials, and Cemex. The company traces its origins to 1879 in Germany, was reorganized in 2018 through the Praxair merger, and completed a corporate restructuring in 2023 that consolidated listing on the NYSE under ticker LIN. It is headquartered in Woking, UK, incorporated in Ireland, and has approximately 80,000 employees globally.

Name

Linde

Legal name

Linde plc

Website

https://linde.com

Company type

Public

Founded year

1879

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

5,001–10,000 employees

Short description

Linde plc is the world's largest industrial gases and engineering company, supplying oxygen, nitrogen, argon, hydrogen, and specialty gases through on-site plants, pipelines, and merchant distribution under long-term contracts. It serves electronics, healthcare, manufacturing, chemicals, energy, and space launch customers across 80+ countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Industrial Gases

NAICS

Industrial Gas Manufacturing (32512), Basic Chemical Manufacturing (3251), Pump and Compressor Manufacturing (33391)

SIC

Miscellaneous Chemical Products (2890)

akta.pro primary industry

Air Separation (Oxygen/Nitrogen/Argon) (IMAEACAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Electronics & Semiconductor High-Purity Gases (IMAEACAG), Gas Supply, Aggregation & Contracting (Producers, Marketers, Tolling, GSA) (EUALALAD), Process Gases & Gas Delivery Consumables (Specialty/Bulk/UHP) (HDAHAGAL)

Keywords

• Industrial gas supply
• Hydrogen production
• Carbon capture
• Cryogenic engineering
• Medical oxygen

Headquarters

HQ city

Woking

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices7 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Industrial Gases Sales: Sale of atmospheric gases (oxygen, nitrogen, argon), specialty gases, and hydrogen through long-term take-or-pay contracts, on-site supply arrangements, and merchant market distribution. Revenue is recurring in nature with high contract retention. Pricing includes 2% price attainment achieved in Q1 2026.
2. Project Engineering and Construction: Design, build, own and operate industrial gas facilities for customers. Linde has a $10 billion project backlog with $2.5-3 billion expected to start up in 2026. Major projects include clean hydrogen facilities, air separation units, and carbon capture plants.
3. Helium Supply: Linde is one of the world's largest helium suppliers with strategic storage caverns. The company commissioned one of the world's largest helium storage caverns in July 2025 and has secured long-term supply agreements with semiconductor manufacturers like Samsung and SK Hynix amid global helium supply disruptions.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Linde produces and distributes atmospheric, process, and specialty industrial gases—including oxygen, nitrogen, argon, hydrogen, and helium—to enterprise customers in healthcare, manufacturing, electronics, chemicals, energy, and aerospace. The company complements gas supply with plant engineering, on-site facility ownership under long-term take-or-pay contracts, advanced material technologies (metal powders, surface coatings, sputtering targets), and clean energy solutions spanning green and blue hydrogen, carbon capture, and hydrogen refueling infrastructure.

Product overview

Linde is a leading global industrial gases and engineering company offering a unified portfolio centered on industrial gases (oxygen, nitrogen, argon, hydrogen, helium, specialty gases), complemented by Engineering services for plant development, Advanced Material Technologies (metal powders, surface coatings, sputtering targets), and Clean Energy solutions (hydrogen production, carbon capture via HISORP CC technology). The company's proprietary ECOVAR technology enables small on-site gas production. Linde serves diverse end markets including chemicals & energy, food & beverage, electronics, healthcare, manufacturing, metals and mining, and space exploration.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• ECOVAR: Proprietary technology for small on-site gas production, designed to be highly efficient, flexible and reliable while helping customers minimize their environmental impact.
• HISORP
• Linde Healthcare

Products and services

• Industrial Gases Atmospheric gases (oxygen, nitrogen, argon), specialty gases, hydrogen, and helium supplied to enterprise customers across healthcare, manufacturing, electronics, space, and industrial sectors via on-site plants, pipeline networks, and merchant deliveries.
• Engineering Services

Quantifiable outcome

• Customers avoided 98 million metric tons of CO2-equivalent emissions in 2025 through use of Linde's products and technologies
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers13 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• ValmetcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 27 May 2026Linde and Valmet partnered to develop electrically driven carbon capture solutions specifically for the pulp and paper industry. The collaboration combines Linde's HISORP CC CO2 capture technology with Valmet's mill integration capabilities and process expertise, enabling CO2 separation without requiring steam or thermal energy.
• Ib vogtminorOthers · 7 May 2026Linde signed a 10-year power purchase agreement with solar developer Ib vogt to source electricity from a new solar park to be built in Catalonia, Spain, scheduled for commissioning in Q2 2028. The agreement will help Linde avoid approximately 37,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions annually.
• Blue Point Number One (CF Industries, JERA, Mitsui)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 23 June 2025Linde signed new long-term agreement to supply industrial gases to Blue Point's 1.4 million metric tons low-carbon ammonia plant in Ascension Parish, Louisiana. Joint venture between CF Industries, JERA and Mitsui & Co.
• Dow ChemicalcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 27 August 2024Long-term agreement for supply of clean hydrogen to Dow's Fort Saskatchewan Path2Zero Project in Alberta, Canada. Linde will invest more than $2 billion to build, own and operate a world-scale integrated clean hydrogen and atmospheric gases facility.
• H2 Green SteelcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2024Long-term agreement for supply of industrial gases to the world's first large-scale green steel production plant, supporting decarbonization of steel manufacturing.
• Heidelberg MaterialscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 12 April 2023Joint large-scale carbon capture project at Heidelberg Materials' Lengfurt cement plant in Germany. Linde will build, own and operate a facility to capture, liquefy and purify approximately 70,000 tons of CO2 per year.
• ExxonMobil Low Carbon SolutionscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 4 April 2023Long-term agreement for ExxonMobil to transport and permanently store up to 2.2 million metric tons of carbon dioxide each year from Linde's Beaumont hydrogen production facility. Supports decarbonization of customer processes while supplying low-carbon hydrogen at scale.
• SLB (formerly Schlumberger)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 31 October 2022Strategic collaboration on carbon capture, utilization and sequestration (CCUS) projects to accelerate decarbonization solutions across industrial and energy sectors. Combines decades of experience in CO2 capture and sequestration, innovative technology portfolios, project development and execution expertise.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Air Liquide: Air Liquide is the world's second-largest industrial gas company, directly competing with Linde across atmospheric gases, hydrogen, and healthcare in overlapping geographies (Europe, Americas, Asia). Both operate on-site/pipeline, merchant, and electronics gas models under similar take-or-pay contract structures.
• Air Products and Chemicals: Air Products is a top-tier direct competitor in industrial and specialty gases, with significant overlap in hydrogen, helium, and electronics gases. Both serve semiconductor, healthcare, and refining end-markets with comparable on-site supply and merchant delivery models.
• Messer Group: Messer is the largest privately held industrial gas company and the world's fourth-largest overall, competing directly with Linde in Europe, the Americas, and Asia after acquiring portions of Linde's divested assets. Operates a comparable portfolio of atmospheric, specialty, and medical gases.
• Nippon Sanso Holdings (Taiyo Nippon Sanso): Nippon Sanso Holdings acquired the majority of Praxair's European business as a divestiture condition of the Linde-Praxair merger, making it a major direct competitor. Operates industrial, specialty, and electronics gases with strong presence in Japan, U.S., and Europe.

Emerging players

• Iwatani Corporation: Iwatani is a leading Japanese hydrogen and industrial gas company with a strong focus on liquid hydrogen supply and hydrogen refueling infrastructure. Overlaps with Linde's clean hydrogen strategy and serves similar semiconductor and mobility customers in Asia.
• Nel ASA: Nel ASA is a Norwegian electrolyzer manufacturer focused on green hydrogen production technology. Competes with Linde in providing hydrogen production solutions but does not produce or distribute industrial gases at scale.

Regional players

• Yingde Gases Group: Yingde Gases is one of China's largest independent on-site industrial gas suppliers, primarily serving Chinese steel, chemicals, and electronics manufacturers. Operates a comparable on-site gas supply model to Linde but largely confined to Greater China.
• SOL Group: SOL Group is a European industrial and medical gas supplier headquartered in Italy, competing with Linde in Mediterranean markets across atmospheric, specialty, and homecare gases with comparable take-or-pay and merchant models.
• Air Water Inc. Air Water is a Japanese diversified industrial gas and chemicals company with growing presence in hydrogen and electronics gases. Competes with Linde in Asia-Pacific semiconductor and industrial gas markets with a similar horizontal gas portfolio.

Broad incumbents

• Chart Industries: Chart Industries manufactures cryogenic equipment and process technology used across the industrial gas value chain, including air separation and hydrogen liquefaction. Sells into the same end-customers as Linde but focuses on equipment rather than gas molecule supply.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/linde
• Xx.com/Lindeplc
• Facebookfacebook.com/lindeplc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles16 records

Subsidiaries4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A5 records

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Linde