Lima, Ohio—Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan Inc.’s ammonia plant here went down Feb. 29 due to a small fire caused by a leaking gasket. The damage was minor, and the plant was expected to resume operations by Friday, March 4, following the conclusion of an investigation into the leak, completion of repairs, and safety testing. The shutdown will mean some lost production, but it would be within the reliability budget for the plant. The outage applies only to the ammonia plant. The other plants in Lima have continued operations.
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DuPont
DuPont announced on March 2 that Krysta Harden has joined the company as vice president of Public Policy and Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO), succeeding Linda Fisher, who elected to retire last month. Harden most recently served as deputy secretary of the USDA. She will have responsibility for leading the company’s public policy and government affairs strategies, as well as its sustainability, philanthropy, product stewardship, and global regulatory activities. She will be based in Washington, D.C.
DuPont appointed Fisher as its chief sustainability officer in 2005, becoming the first publicly traded company to name a CSO. “Under Linda’s leadership, DuPont announced its first set of market-facing sustainability goals in 2006, tying how we invest in R&D and grow revenue with sustainability in mind,” said James C. Collins, DuPont executive vice president. “Her dedication in these areas contributed significantly to both DuPont and society.”
Prior to her role as deputy secretary at USDA, Harden served as chief of staff to the secretary of agriculture, Tom Vilsack, and assistant secretary for Congressional Relations. Preceding her service at USDA, Harden spent five years as CEO of the National Association of Conservation Districts (NACD), and also worked with the American Soybean Association.
The Canadian Association of Agri-Retailers (CAAR)
The Canadian Association of Agri-Retailers (CAAR) presented a number of awards at their annual conference Feb. 16-18 in Saskatoon, Sask. The peer-nominated awards are given to CAAR members who have shown dedication to their practice and the agriculture industry over the past year. This year’s recipients include Troy Laforge of Rack Petroleum as Agronomist of the Year, and McEwens Fuels and Fertilizers as Agri-Retailer of the Year. In addition, David Wendland of Wendland Ag was named to the Agri-Retailers Hall of Fame, Richardson International received the 4R Nutrient Stewardship Agri-Retailers award, and Al Raine of Richardson received the Chairman’s Award.
“These awards are our way of acknowledging the hard work and exceptional customer service of our members,” said CAAR President and CEO Delaney Ross Burtnack. “It’s important to recognize exceptional efforts, share successes, and help each other to overcome challenges. In doing so, we grow as a community, and improve our ability to support the industry that feeds the world.”
Southern States Cooperative Inc.
Southern States Cooperative Inc. has named Steve Becraft as the new executive vice president of Agronomy, effective March 7, 2016. He will be in charge of all agronomy operations and procurement throughout the organization’s footprint, which includes 1,200 retail outlets serving 200,000 farmer-members in 23 states. Becraft is a graduate of the University of Illinois, Champaign/Urbana, with a degree in Agronomy and has nearly 30 years of experience in the agronomy business, spending most of that time with Cargill and Ag Partners LLC. He will be moving to Richmond, Va., from Victoria, Minn., where he last served as Cargill’s U.S. Retail Crop Inputs Manager. “We are pleased Steve is joining the Southern States team” said President and CEO Jeff Stroburg. “His many years of experience and enthusiasm for the business will ensure Southern States remains a dominant player in the agronomy arena for years to come.”
CF Industries Holdings Inc.
CF Industries Holdings Inc. reports that Tom Grooms has joined the company as vice president and chief information officer. He succeeds Kirk Siefkas, who will be retiring later this year. Prior to joining CF, Grooms was vice president and chief information officer of Valspar. Previously, he served in various leadership roles with Medtronic. He earned a B.S. in Finance from Valparaiso University and holds an MBA from the University of Illinois at Chicago.
K+S Aktiengesellschaft
K+S Aktiengesellschaft, Kassel, Germany, has announced that Dr. Andreas Radmacher, who has been responsible for the company’s Potash and Magnesium products business unit since Oct. 2014, left the company on Feb. 29. K+S said Radmacher, who has been a member of the board of executive directors since Sept. 2013, and the company’s supervisory board mutually agreed not to renew his mandate, which was due to end on Aug. 31, 2016. Radmacher is additionally responsible for K+S’s Disposal and Recycling, as well as Inactive Plants activities.
Norbert Steiner, K+S’s board chairman, will temporarily take over Radmacher’s responsibilities. The composition of the other board departments remains unchanged, with Dr. Burkhard Lohr (CFO), Dr. Thomas Nöcker (labor director), and Mark Roberts (Salt business unit).
The Gavilon Group LLC
The Gavilon Group LLC, Omaha, Neb., announced Feb. 26 that Lewis Batchelder has been named CEO of the Gavilon Group of companies, effective March 1, 2016. The company said he brings more than forty years of experience in the grain industry, and has held positions as senior vice president, Agriculture Services at Archer Daniels Midland Co. and chairman of Alfred C. Toepfer International, a global merchandiser of agricultural commodities and processed products.
Gavilon said Batchelder’s experience in the grain industry, along with his long-standing relationship with Marubeni Corp., of which Gavilon is a wholly-owned subsidiary, will be instrumental in building on Gavilon’s success while also shaping the future path for growth of the company within Marubeni’s group-wide business strategy.
Gavilon said former CEO Jim Anderson, COO John Neppl, and Greg Konsor, vice president of North American Grain, have stepped down. Along with the addition to Batchelder, Chris Faust will be promoted to vice president and general manager of North American Grain.
Transportation
U.S. Gulf: The Corps reported transit times through Industrial Lock at a minimum 22 hours for the week. The delays caused a backlog of tows awaiting service in the lock’s river-side direction.
Algiers wait times were called 22 hours for the week, with 21 vessels in line to lock. Bayou Boeuf Lock reported two-hour wait times with an average of four boats in line, and Port Allen Lock navigation was reported at about an hour.
Sources noted improvements at Bayou Sorrel Lock, where transit delays were reported at around two hours for the week, despite continued lock restrictions. The controls are expected to continue until the flood-side and land-side differential falls below three feet.
Tidal surges closed the East Calumet floodgate to transit last week, and elevated depth readings from the West Calumet floodgate’s east gauge closed that site.
Harvey Lock shut down for repairs on Feb. 29 and is scheduled to remain offline until April 30. The Corps is expected to route traffic through Algiers Lock instead, with “significant” delays expected.
Calcasieu Lock travel was delayed by an average of nine hours for the week with nine boats queued, and West Port Arthur Bridge clearance is reduced by a minimum of three feet through April 30 while maintenance and painting operations are conducted.
The National Weather Service (NWS) noted Baton Rouge levels at 29.15 feet on March 3, with levels expected to surpass the gauge’s 30-foot action stage on March 5. The New Orleans gauge read 10.98 feet and rising. Flood stage at New Orleans begins at 17 feet.
Brazos Lock delays were called 9-12 hours last week, and 18 vessels were reportedly queued on March 3. An intermittent closure warning remained in effect for daylight transit due to ongoing repairs to the east and west floodgates. Colorado Lock wait times were called 4-8 hours, with eight boats in line for service.
A tugboat fire closed the Houston Ship Channel the morning of Feb. 26. The vessel was moored near the 268,000 barrel/d Houston-area LyondellBasell refinery, triggering a safety zone.
Lower Mississippi River: Vicksburg-area levels were on the rise, reaching 36.88 feet on March 3 and surpassing the 35-foot action stage. The NWS expected depths to increase to 38.6 feet by March 7.
Rising levels were also reported at Memphis. The gauge there showed 26.6 feet on March 3, with depths forecast to peak near the 28-foot action stage on March 5-6.
Upper Mississippi River: Lock 27 was offline on Feb. 25, 26, and 29, shippers said, due to a series of diving inspections at both the site’s main and auxiliary chambers. Wait times following the lock’s reopening were reported in the 1-3 hour range.
Mel Price Lock saw delays of 1-2 hours for the week, and Lock 20 traffic reportedly needed 1-2 hours to pass. Lock 20 logged delays of 4-5 hours on March 2, with tows primarily headed in the upriver direction.
St. Louis-area depths were on the decline, according to NWS. The gauge read 14.22 feet and falling on March 3, with levels forecast to fall below 11 feet on March 16.
A number of Upper River locks reopened early for spring transit. Originally scheduled to come online March 4, Locks 18-21 opened to navigation on March 2. Locks 13-17 remained offline with a posted date of March 4 to return to service. The Lock 9 reopen date was moved up to March 12 from its original March 17.
Illinois River: Lockport Lock traffic reported 1-2 hour transit delays, and both the Brandon Road and Dresden Island Locks reported average wait times of around an hour. Marseilles Lock navigation required 1-2 hours for the week, and Starved Rock Lock delays crept up to 2-3 hours. LaGrange Lock reported 1.5 hour waits.
Ohio River: High-water operating conditions continued along the Ohio River last week, reducing tow sizes and causing transit delays.
The Cincinnati gauge fell below the 40-foot action stage last week, cresting at 44.24 feet on Feb. 28 before landing at 34.89 feet on March 3. Cairo held firm at the minor-flood stage, however, with March 3 readings indicating a depth of 43.55 feet and holding. Cairo flood stage begins at 40 feet.
Locks 52 and 53 were not locking again last week, allowing vessels to pass freely. Despite the open conditions, Lock 53 wait times were reported at 1-2 hours. Lock 52 added an additional hour.
Emsworth Lock transit was called around an hour, and Dashields wait times averaged 1-2 hours. Montgomery Lock navigation was possible in under an hour, and sources put Pike Island Lock delays at an hour. Waits at R.C. Byrd averaged 90 minutes, shippers said.
The Montgomery Lock auxiliary chamber is scheduled to shut down March 14 through April 1 with “minimal delays” expected, and the lock’s main chamber will close May 16 through June 10, which shippers warned could trigger major delays. The Montgomery main chamber will open on May 28-30 and again on June 4-5 to clear waiting traffic.
Shippers are bracing for delays at Greenup Lock. Greenup’s main chamber will close April 1 through Sept. 30, shippers said, leaving the auxiliary unit available.
The New Cumberland Lock will go offline April 4 through May 27, reopening on April 16-17, April 30-May 1, and May 15-16. Shippers expect minor delays. Emsworth Lock is scheduled to close July 5 through Aug. 10, reopening on July 16-17 and July 30-31.
High-water conditions remained on the Allegheny, Kanawha, and Big Sandy Rivers last week. The Monongahela River also experienced elevated levels. The Braddock Lock and Dam river chamber was unavailable due to persistent equipment failure, forcing traffic through the land chamber instead.
Traffic delays eased on the Cumberland River, but high water continued to slow transits, shippers said.
High water was also reported on the Tennessee River. Shippers braced for a new round of delays at Chickamauga Lock, and expected to face routine maintenance March 28 through April 20. Shippers said 10-11 hour waits could be expected. Chickamauga concluded a round of electrical maintenance on Feb. 23.
Arkansas River: Webbers Falls Lock is scheduled to close May 16-22 in the upstream direction, followed by a downstream closure Aug. 24 through Sept. 11.
Crops/Weather
Grain Futures: As of 4:00 p.m. on March 3, wheat futures were higher compared to the week before, corn futures were lower, and soybeans were mixed.
Corn for May 2016 was $3.565/bushel, down from $3.605/bushel at last report. The December 2016 price for corn fell to $3.755/bushel from $3.7975/bushel the week before, while trading of March 2017 corn contracts checked in at $3.8425/bushel.
The May 2016 soybean price was $8.6375/bushel, down from $8.655/bushel at last report. Soybeans for November 2016 were $8.78/bushel, up slightly from the previous week’s $8.7675/bushel, while soybeans for January 2017 were posted at $8.8375/bushel.
Wheat for July 2016 was $4.7575/bushel, up from the prior week’s $4.675/bushel. September 2016 wheat firmed to $4.89/bushel from $4.8075/bushel the week before, while July 2017 wheat contracts traded at $5.3525/bushel.
Eastern Cornbelt: Another winter weather advisory was in effect for northern Illinois as the week progressed, but only 1-2 inches of snow was reported in the Chicago area and in parts of northwestern Indiana. Earlier in the week, rainfall was reported in western and central Indiana.
Western Cornbelt: A mix of rain and snow across northern Iowa at midweek left up to four inches of new accumulation in some northeastern areas of the state, and officially pushed Iowa into the record books for posting the wettest winter in more than 100 years. The state collected 6.5 inches of precipitation from December through February, nearly double the seasonal average of 3.3 inches.
The rest of the region reported generally mild weather conditions in early March, which fueled a heavy preplant ammonia application pace in parts of Missouri and Nebraska. “We have been selling product, and yes, it has been pretty active,” said one regional contact on March 3.
California: California was bracing for a series of powerful Pacific storms in early March, with the first round expected to bring heavy rain, mountain snow, and gusty winds on March 4-6.
Sources said the moisture is needed after a dry February, but there were fears that heavy precipitation could unleash flash floods and mudslides in the state. Weekend rainfall was expected to total an inch or more in northern and central California, while several inches was likely in the Sierra foothills and coastal range locations. Up to two feet of snow was likely at higher elevations in the Sierra Nevada, along with 60-80 mph wind gusts.
Southern California was also expecting weekend rains from the storm. The extended forecast showed as much as six feet of snow falling at higher elevations across the state over the first two weeks of March.
Sources said field activities were picking up in the state, with reports of dry blends moving briskly on nut trees that are now in full bloom. However, some regional contacts continued to report “uncertainty in the market over the very dry conditions and how much water will be available for irrigation.”
One source said some locations are having a hard time keeping up with demand, but others said it is still early enough in the season that supply and transportation issues are minimal. “This has the potential to get worse, however, as the season feels like it is getting a bit more compressed compared to the last couple of years,” said one regional contact.
Pacific Northwest: Coastal areas of Oregon reported heavy rain and gusty winds in early March. A winter weather advisory was also issued for northeastern Montana early in the week. Mountain snowpack generally remained at normal or slightly above-normal levels in the region, despite a warm and dry February.
Most locations in the Pacific Northwest experienced steadily warmer weather during the first days of March, which launched some field activities. “Fieldwork is very active, spring is here with potatoes and onions already going in the ground,” said one Washington source. “At the same time, we are topdressing wheat and are expecting the irrigation water to turn on next week, and UAN should start going through the pivots.”
Western Canada: While coastal areas of British Columbia were wet in early March, much of Western Canada remained unseasonably warm and dry in early March. One Saskatchewan source said his location received 6-8 inches of snow in late February, but warm weather returned during the first days of March.
The mild weather continues a trend, with Southern Saskatchewan setting numerous warm temperature records in February. Canada’s Weather Network said on March 1 that the dry conditions should persist in Western Canada through the spring planting season.
As a result, Manitoba’s latest flood forecast shows a “relatively low risk” of serious flooding in the province, citing less frost in the soil and less snow on the ground. Efforts were already underway to break up ice on the Red River, and sources said dikes along the Assiniboine River should be able to hold under the current forecast.
Several dealers said they were prepared for an early start to the spring planting season in Western Canada, but most said they don’t expect much activity until the first days of April or late March at the earliest.
Sulfuric Acid
U.S. Gulf: Price ideas for the Gulf sulfuric acid market were generally reported in the $35-$45/mt CFR range, unchanged from the previous week. Market players described interest as scant, however. “That (price) is only an indication,” said one contact. “There’s no demand for it.”
Offers from Northwest European smelters were mostly called in the $0-$5/mt FOB range, with a small number of sales expected to return a negative netback.
The Brazilian CFR market was called $35-$45/mt CFR, with Chilean price ideas noted in the $45-$60/mt CFR range.
Sources speculated that Alcoa Inc.’s Intalco aluminum smelter, located in Ferndale, Wash., may not close in June as originally expected. Along with the extended bear market for aluminum, Alcoa cited high electricity costs from the Bonneville Power Administration as a factor in the shutdown.
A new electricity agreement signed by Alcoa last week is valid through the end of June, sources said, and a longer-term deal is possible. More favorable utility costs would likely delay the facility’s closure, according to sources. The plant was originally scheduled to close in January 2016.
Metals posted a strong week on the London Metal Exchange. Aluminum, copper, nickel, lead, and zinc closed higher on March 2 compared with the week before.
Aluminum closed at $1,597.00/mt, up from $1,552.00/mt a week earlier, and copper was worth $4,780.00/mt, up from $4,585.50/mt at last report. Lead values increased to $1,795.00/mt from $1,689.50/mt, and nickel firmed to $8,760.00/mt from the prior week’s $8,520.00/mt. Zinc was up as well, closing at $1,796.50/mt, up from $1,727.00/mt the week before.