California:
The AN-20 market remained at $260/st DEL in California.
Pacific Northwest:
AN-20 pricing was unchanged at $225-$230/st FOB for the last business in the Pacific Northwest.
All posts by 2192
Dry Fertilizer Barge Rates
| 10/19/2018 | Last Week | |
| Memphis | 13.00-15.00 | 13.00-15.00 |
| St. Louis | 14.00-16.00 | 14.00-16.00 |
| Peoria | 18.00-22.00 | 18.00-22.00 |
| Cincinnati | 17.00-22.00 | 17.00-22.00 |
| St. Paul | 25.00-27.00 | 25.00-27.00 |
| Catoosa/Inola | 27.00-29.00 | 27.00-29.00 |
EuroChem Opens Crystalline Urea Phosphate Plant in Lithuania
EuroChem Group AG, Zug, Switzerland, on Oct. 12 formally opened a new €14 million ($16 million) plant with capacity for the production 25,000 mt/y of crystalline urea phosphate at its Lifosa subsidiary in Kėdainiai, Lithuania. Crystalline urea phosphate is a soluble, chlorine-free fertilizer that contains no heavy metals and is suitable for use on various soils. As it is soluble in water, it can easily be applied by a sprinkler and provides plants with the necessary nitrogen and phosphorous nutrients needed for growth, EuroChem said.
Test production of crystalline urea phosphate began in September, and the plant will ramp up to full production by the end of the year
“This new facility will further strengthen Lifosa’s position in the global fertilizer market,” said AB Lifosa General Manager Jonas Dastikas. Lifosa’s existing product range includes DAP and water-soluble crystal MAP.
Jacobs Receives Sirius EPC Contract
Jacobs Engineering Group Inc., Dallas, said Oct. 11 that it has received an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract from Sirius Minerals PLC, Scarborough, England, for its new materials handling facility (MHF) in Teesside, England. The MHF is being constructed as part of the company’s North Yorkshire Polyhalite Project.
“As the EPC provider for Sirius Minerals’ materials handling facility, Jacobs is delivering more than a full life cycle solution on this project—we’re delivering a facility that is scalable and able to support changing agriculture needs,” said Jacobs Mining, Minerals and Technology Senior Vice President and General Manager Andrew Berryman. “From the run of mine stockpile to the final product loadout, the materials handling facility will contribute to local and global food supply.”
Jacobs is designing the MHF to handle 7 million mt/y of granulated product in its first phase of development, with expansion considerations being developed into the design to support up to 20 million mt/y. In addition, the facility will also handle 3 million mt/y of coarse product.
“Securing a partnership with a company the calibre of Jacobs is great for us and a testament to the world-class nature of this project,” said Sirius Minerals Chief Development Officer Simon Carter. “Their knowledge of EPC projects in the mining sector is hugely valuable, as is their experience of construction projects on Teesside.”
K+S Receives Hattorf Expansion Permit
K+S Group, Kassel, reported on Oct. 11 that the Kassel regional council has approved the expansion of the Hattorf (Philippsthal) tailings pile. As a result, K+S said the disposal of solid production residues, which is an important requirement for producing potash at this site, has been ensured.
“The granted permit now provides the employees of the site, but also the entire company, a good deal of future security,” said K+S CEO Dr. Burkhard Lohr. “After seven years of intensive work, it brings us one step closer to our goal of being able to use our full capacity for processing crude salt without restrictions caused by disposal bottlenecks. I am confident that we are on the right track regarding our wastewater disposal issues.”
The granted permit covers an area of approximately 27 hectares, which is an expansion of the northwestern part of the existing pile. It provides enough space for five to six years. In addition, the official review of the application for the second phase of the pile extension, which would provide enough space until the early 2040s, is already in progress.
Filling can be started soon because the preparation of the expansion area had already begun with an early approval at the beginning of 2018. This had made it possible, within the scope of the pile concept, to get the extensive preparatory work done, which included sealing the base and installing a conveyor belt system. This preparatory work now allows for a continuous production without interruption.
Nigeria’s Dangote Expects January Start-up for Urea Plant
Nigeria’s Dangote Group now expects to start production of urea in January 2019 at its new $2.5 billion plant nearing completion in the Lekki Free Trade Zone, about 50km east of central Lagos, according to the country’s Business Day, citing the group’s owner, Chairman and CEO Aliko Dangote.
Initial plans to start the plant in November were put back due to financial issues at the company that was to supply the gas, according to the report. But these issues are reported to have been resolved. The plant will have capacity to produce some 2.8 million mt/y of granular urea, with much of this expected to go into the export market. Dangote had not responded to inquiries by press time.
Ukraine’s Grossdorf Launches Second UAN Plant
Ukraine agrochemical company Grossdorf last month launched a new UAN fertilizer production unit with a capacity of 60,000 mt/y at Sarata in the country’s southwestern Odessa region, according to a Ukraine Open for Business report, citing a company press release. It is the producer’s second UAN plant, and has increased Grossdorf’s liquid fertilizers production capacity to 410,000 mt/y.
According to the report, Cherkasy-based Grossdorf receives raw materials for the production of UAN from elsewhere in Europe and Central Asia, but transportation costs from the central regions of Ukraine to the southern regions of the country are expensive. Consequently, the company built a production base and raw materials storage facilities in Sarata. Next year, the company says it plans to diversify its raw materials supply markets.
According to Grossdorf Commercial Director Serhiy Ruban, cited by the report, the capacities launched will enable the company to supply the entire Odessa region with UAN fertilizers, and also consider the export of some of the output to neighbouring Moldova.
Grossdorf (Cherkasy) was established in 2016 and its core business is the supply of basic fertilizers for precision farming.
Court Suspends TDLC Decision; Nutrien Calls Ponce Position Hypocritical
SQM, Santiago, reported Oct. 11 that it has filed a motion for reconsideration to the resolution dated Oct. 4 before the Antitrust Court, Tribunal de Defensa de la Libre Competencia (TDLC), which approved the out of court settlement agreement reached between the Chilean National Economic Prosecutor Office, Fiscalía Nacional Económica (FNE), and Tianqi Lithium Corp. (GM Sept. 14, p. 25, Sept. 21, p. 1). The agreement outlined stipulations to Tianqi Lithium’s purchase of Nutrien Ltd.’s 24 percent stake in SQM.
SQM, which is still dominated by company’s still controlled by former President Julio Ponce, said it is important to remember that the investigation carried out by the FNE pointed out and verified that the intended Tianqi transaction presented several risks to competition. Accordingly, it also noted that the FNE ruled out that this transaction would result in efficiencies.
In SQM´s opinion, the measures of the agreement do not effectively resolve the risks that are intended to be mitigated, and are not properly structured to prevent the access to sensitive information, which along with harming SQM, could also harm the market.
SQM reiterates that as a publicly traded corporation with shares traded in Chile as well as on the New York Stock Exchange, it does not oppose entry of new shareholders, and acknowledges that this decision is not for SQM to oppose. Equally, SQM said it does not discriminate nor favor shareholders or investors based on their political views, nationality or other.
Both Tianqi Lithium and Nutrien expect the deal to close in the fourth quarter.
EuroChem Takes On Trammo’s U.S. Transport and Storage Assets
EuroChem Group AG, Zug, Switzerland, on Oct. 8 announced the expansion of its North American distribution network via the assumption of dry and liquid fertilizer transport and storage assets from international merchandising and trading firm Trammo Inc., New York City. In August, it was reported that Trammo planned to exit these products, but would continue with anhydrous ammonia, sulfur and other commodities (GM Aug. 10, p. 25).
EuroChem said the move substantially expands its fertilizer storage capacity in the U.S., and will enable it to strengthen its presence into Western Canada as well as on the East Coast. EuroChem now operates 25 warehouses in the U.S. with a current storage capacity of about 500,000 mt.
EuroChem said the U.S. market accounted for about 11 percent of group sales in 2017. The group expanded its presence in the U.S. in October 2015 with the acquisition of Ben-Trei Fertilizer Co., a Tulsa-based fertilizer distribution business historically focused on sales within the country’s heartland (GM Nov. 2, 2015).
“The agreement with Trammo will substantially increase our storage capacity, while also broadening our geographic reach,” said EuroChem North America Managing Director Charlie Bendana. “It will support the ongoing expansion of our U.S. business, allowing us to fulfil growing demand from local farmers for high-quality fertilizers.”
However, in response to inquiries by Green Markets about the nature of the agreement with Trammo, a spokesperson for the group said EuroChem could not add anything further to the released statement. But he confirmed that the agreement includes all of Trammo’s dry and liquid fertilizer warehouses in the U.S.
EuroChem began operating in the U.S. through its Tampa-based subsidiary, EuroChem Trading USA, in 2006. The group’s sales to the U.S. market in 2014, prior to the Ben-Trei acquisition, accounted for 8 percent of its total sales.
Ben-Trei distributes a variety of dry fertilizer and feed products, primarily via truck and rail transport, and in fiscal 2015 supplied over 1 million st of product to more than 530 customers. With a secure base in key U.S. agricultural regions, from Texas and Louisiana across the Midwest Cornbelt to California, Ben-Trei has expanded its feed product distribution capabilities on the East Coast, with new sales outlets in Savannah, Ga., and Richmond, Va. It has also increased its warehousing capacity in Oklahoma and Minnesota.
Salt Lake Potash Gets Nod to Build Williamson Ponds
Australian junior company Salt Lake Potash Ltd., Perth, Western Australia, said Oct.8 it has secured approval from the Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety (DMIRS) to construct a pond system to dewater the Williamson Pit at Lake Way. Lake Way is one of nine salt lakes comprising the company’s Goldfields Salt Lakes project covering a 3,300 km-area in Western Australia. The Williamson Ponds will be the first operational scale sulfate of potash (SOP) evaporation ponds built across the project, and to be built on a salt lake in Australia.
The DMIRS has now given approval to Salt Lake Potash to construct ponds totalling up to 133 ha, as well as ancillary infrastructure and a trench to provide conditioning brine to manage the chemistry of the brine extracted from the Williamson Pit, Salt Lake Potash said.
The Williamson Pit has a JORC measured resource of 1.26Gl of brine at an average SOP grade of 25kg/m2. Construction of the Williamson Ponds will proceed upon completion of final engineering designs and contractor engagements, and completion of formal documents with Blackham Resources Ltd. the owner of the Williamson Pit, as well as satisfaction of aboriginal heritage requirements, said the SOP developer.
It plans to shortly start initial construction of a demonstration plant at Lake Way, producing up to 50,000 mt/y of SOP. In April, it inked an offtake agreement with Mitsubishi Australia Ltd. and Mitsubishi Corp. with sales and offtake rights for up to 50 percent of the SOP production from the demonstration plant (GM April 13, p. 31) and last week, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) setting out the basis for the second offtake agreement for the Goldfields Salt Lakes project with Sinofert Holdings Ltd. (GM Oct. 5, p. 28).