The catalytic activity of an industrially supplied nickel foam was evaluated for the conversion of methane to syngas via partial oxidation in air. At a temperature of 850 A degrees C, 89% CH4 conversion was attained with H-2 and CO selectivity of 96 and 97%, respectively. The catalytic performance of nickel foam was found to be comparable to an in-house prepared 10%wt Ni/gamma-Al2O3. Interestingly the foam catalyst was found to be capable of light-off without in situ H-2 reduction unlike the supported nickel catalyst. CH4 conversion and H-2 and CO selectivity were found to increase as the inlet temperature increased from 650 to 850 A degrees C. Increasing the contact time by reducing the gas flow rate resulted in reduced CH4 conversion and H-2 and CO selectivity, indicating substantial transport limitations. A key finding was that oxidative pretreatment of the nickel foam led to the formation of a surface oxide layer resulting in an increase in surface area and an improvement in catalytic activity.