To elucidate the influence of Al content and effect of Ni loading on the structure and catalytic activity for hydrodenitrogenation reaction of o-toluidine, a series of mesoporous Al-SBA-15 supported Ni-Re sulphided catalysts were prepared. The textural and chemical properties of support and catalyst were analysed using XRD, N-2-sorption studies, DRS UV-Vis, SEM, HRTEM, NH3-TPD, TPR and XPS. These characterizations indicate that the incorporation of Al content into the SBA-15 framework leads to the formation of moderate acid sites, which shows enhanced catalytic activity. The maximum catalytic activity in 1 wt%Ni-5wt%Re/Al-SBA-15(10) catalyst is due to fine dispersion of Re and Ni over the support, strong metal support interaction, high degree of sulphidation and more sulphur atoms on the surface. (C) 2019 Hydrogen Energy Publications LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.