Abstract: The dry reforming of methane was investigated using a novel catalyst based on natural illite clay to which nickel and magnesium has been added into moldable paste easily extrudated into honeycomb monolith. This approach can represent a significant breakthrough offering an alternative to conventional costly wash-coated ceramic substrates usually difficult to optimize, and a gain in efficiency thanks to the minimization of transfer limitations. The best catalytic performance were obtained with illite clay containing 8 wt.%Ni and 3 wt.%Mg, yielding to excellent conversions of CH4 and CO2 at 800 degrees C of respectively 81% and 76%. The catalytic enhancement observed on magnesium-doped systems was attributed to the stabilization of smaller Ni particles associated with the formation of NiO-MgO solid solution which slows down particle sintering. The obtained results suggest different types of nickel-support interactions in addition to improved basic properties inducing synergy effects on the rate of methane and CO2 conversion and higher resistance to deactivation phenomena.