Yara International ASA said Feb. 20 that it is investing in a new storage facility for dry bulk fertilizer at the Port of Stockton in California. The state-of-the-art facility will allow Yara to better serve the U.S. agricultural sector and creates a platform for growth in a prime market.
“This is the first major investment in an import dry bulk facility by any company in Western U.S. for 30 years, and a sign of Yara’s future commitment to both the region and the USA,” says Yara President and CEO Thorleif Enger.
Construction will begin as soon as all permits are in place, and completion is scheduled for the first quarter of 2009. The project will entail a total investment of US $21 million.
“The U.S. is an important growth market and we intend to build and maintain a modern and efficient operational platform that allows us to grow moving forward,” says Edward Cavazuti, Yara Head of Downstream.
Yara said the flagship terminal will provide a full assortment to customers, handling seven different types of key products simultaneously, including NPKs, calcium nitrate, and urea. The new fertilizer warehouse will have a storage capacity of 80,000 tons and be built close to an existing Yara facility for liquid fertilizer at the Port of Stockton. Yara has some 125,000 st of liquid capacity at Stockton, with seven tanks storing UAN, CAN 17, and CN 9. The deep-water terminal has a draft of 34 feet, allowing for shipment of 30,000 ton cargoes.
“There are a few ports on the West Coast that can efficiently handle dry bulk fertilizer. Stockton is ideal as a centrally located, inland port in one of the most important agricultural areas in North America. Our terminal, with its truck and rail capabilities will help connect not only California, but the Western States to the rest of the world,” says Pete Valesares, president of Yara North America.
The Stockton Gateway is an inland water terminal located in the heart of the Central Valley of California, core market for Yara’s specialty plant nutrients. California, which on its own is the fifth largest agriculture producer in the world, grows approximately 250 crops and supplies close to 75 percent of all U.S. cash crops.
Yara says the increased sourcing capabilities will not only help serve the state of California, they will also improve Yara’s reach into the surrounding agricultural areas in Oregon, Washington, Idaho, and southern Arizona.
“The improved level of supply of products will mean the facility will be able to load a truck in less than ten minutes ?Çô and this means efficient and improved delivery service to our customers,” says Lou Astbury, Yara North America western vice president.
Yara says with sea, rail, and truck access, the Stockton Gateway Terminal will generate projected cost savings of $2 million per year, thanks to lower ocean freight and bagging costs, plus improved operational efficiency. The new Stockton dry capacity is expected to eventually be used to consolidate existing leased capacity at Stockton, as well as dry capacity at Sacramento.
Additional Yara storage in the region includes dry capacity at San Diego, Calif. and Vancouver, Wash. Yara also has four tanks for a combined 57,000 st of liquid storage at Port Huenene, in Ventura County, Calif. It expects to eventually add a fifth tank. Product available for Port Huenene includes UAN, CAN 17, CN 8, and CN 9.