By way of melting, iron and iron-cobalt wustite based catalysts promoted with oxides of calcium, aluminium, and potassium were obtained. Measurements of the activity in the ammonia synthesis reaction at pressure of 10 MPa were conducted. A positive effect of cobalt addition into the wustite structure of the iron catalyst on increasing in the catalyst catalytic activity in the ammonia synthesis reaction, lowering a temperature, at which catalysts achieved the maximum reduction rate, decreasing values of the apparent activation energy of obtained catalysts, and increasing resistance to the overheating process was observed. All the results were compared with the results obtained for the industrial magnetite-based iron catalyst. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.