Parkland Fertilizers, a locally-owned crop inputs retail business in Alberta, has sold its Lacombe and Wetaskiwin locations to Central Alberta Co-op and Wetaskiwin Co-op, respectively, according to March 7 announcements from the companies.

Parkland’s Lacombe location officially became part of Central Alberta Co-op on March 6, while Parkland’s Wetaskiwin fertilizer center became part of Wetaskiwin Co-op on the same date. Both locations offer custom granular fertilizer blending, delivery, and spreading, as well as crop protection chemical sales and precision ag services. The Lacombe site handles seed products as well.

Both Wetaskiwin and Central Valley are member-owners of Federated Cooperatives Ltd., (FCL), an organization based in Saskatoon, Sask., that provides central wholesaling, manufacturing, marketing, and administrative services to some 200 retail cooperatives in Canada.

Federated announced last summer (GM July 29, 2016) that was investing C$75 million to build two new state-of-the-art, high-throughput fertilizer terminals in Hanley, Sask., and Brandon, Man. The Hanley terminal will be able to store up to 45,000 mt of fertilizer while the Brandon terminal will hold 27,500 mt. Both facilities are expected to be fully operational by mid-2017.

Canadian agribusiness Parrish & Heimbecker Ltd. (P&H) announced on Jan. 16 that it has entered into an agreement to purchase four Crop Production Services (Canada) Inc. locations in Alberta. The retail facilities are in Sedgewick, Wainwright, St. Paul, and Marwayne, and will expand Parrish and Heimbecker’s presence in north-central Alberta.

“P&H has been aggressively expanding its footprint on the crop input business across Canada with several new fertilizer plants, chemical sheds, and seed facilities at our grain terminal locations,” said Justin Watson, P&H national director of crop nutrients. “Expansion into this geography and working with the experienced staff at these four new locations will be a great opportunity. We look forward to meeting the needs of customers in this area.”

The transaction, which is expected to close on Feb. 2, 2017, is the latest in a series of recent efforts by P&H to expand its fertilizer business in Canada. The company reported in late 2016 that it had opened new fertilizer blending plants at Wilson Siding, Alba., Gladstone, Man., and Biggar, Sask., and was working to expand fertilizer storage capacity at existing Saskatchewan crop input and grain terminal locations in Moosomin, Tisdale, and Moose Jaw (GM Dec. 2, 2016).

“Sedgewick, Wainwright, St. Paul, and Marwayne have strong staff who are dedicated to serving their customers,” said Watson. “We look forward to welcoming them into the P&H family. P&H is proud to offer services into North/Central Alberta.”

Headquartered in Winnipeg, Man., P&H is a family-owned operation with more than 40 locations and over 1,500 employees across Canada. In addition to crop input products and services, the company has an extensive grain elevator network and also operates trading and merchandising, transportation and logistics, feed, and grain milling businesses.

A gas leak at the Gujarat Narmada Valley Fertilizer Co. (GNFC) plant in Dahej on Nov. 3 killed four workers and injured 14 others.

Government and company officials gave no official cause for the leak, which occurred at the toluene disocyanate (TDI) gas operation in the GNFC complex. However, local media reported that a faulty gasket lead to the leak. The same plant had a similar accident in January 2014, leaving 15 workers seriously ill.

The plant was shut down and will remain offline for an undetermined time. Local and national government agencies have initiated investigations into the accident.

The board of directors of Geneva Nitrogen LLC announced on Aug. 29 that the company’s two joint venture stakeholders – Austin Powder Co. and Orica USA Inc. – have decided to halt the production of industrial grade ammonium nitrate and nitric acid at Geneva’s plant in Vineyard, Utah, due to a “challenging mining market” and reduced demand for AN.

The plant has been operating as a 50/50 joint venture between Orica and Austin Powder since 2005, when Austin Powder purchased its 50 percent stake from Dyno Nobel Inc. Capacity levels at that time were estimated at 110,000 st/y of AN and 92,000 st/y of nitric acid.

“The reduced output and future production demand continues to have a negative effect on our facility,” said Steve Thompson, Geneva Nitrogen vice president and general manager. “We will be converting the site to a transload facility in early October, which will continue to provide bulk products shipped in by rail for distribution to local customers.”

Current staffing levels for approximately 32 employees will be reduced as a result of the decision, the company said. A small number of employees will be retained to assist with the decommissioning of the plant and to operate the transload facility.

“We are working closely with our employees to assist them during this transition,” Thompson said. “As always, the safety of our employees and the community remains the most important aspect of our operations.”

Agrium Inc. confirmed that one of its employees was injured while working at the company’s Vanscoy potash facility in Saskatchewan early on Aug. 21. Site emergency crews responded to the incident and treated the employee before he was transported by STARS air ambulance to a local hospital, where he is listed in stable condition. Agrium said the incident is under investigation by Agrium and local authorities. The mine was shut down temporarily due to the incident, but is now operating again.

Agrium Inc. announced that it is increasing potash prices by $20/st across all price zones, effective Aug. 23. The move follows a similar increase from PotashCorp earlier in August, when the company reported that it was sold out for the third quarter following “a very strong response” to its potash fill program, and is now taking orders only for October delivery or after at prices that are $20/st above the summer fill level.

The Mosaic Co. on July 13 announced that it will idle its Colonsay potash mine in Saskatchewan for the remainder of 2016 and halt current turnaround activities. Mosaic said the move is intended to allow it to meet customer demand while adapting to challenging potash market conditions. Approximately 330 employees have received temporary layoff notices as a result.

“We continue to execute the difficult but necessary actions to ensure Mosaic will be as competitive as possible across the business cycle,” said President and CEO Joc O’Rourke. “Lower global potash demand and market prices require that we curtail production. Idling Colonsay will enable us to meet our customers’ needs while reducing our production costs.”

The Colonsay mine’s proven annual production capacity is 2.6 million mt. Mosaic’s lower-cost Esterhazy and Belle Plaine mines, in combination with current inventory, will allow it to meet its short-term potash supply needs, the company said.

EuroChem Group AG announced on July 6 that it has acquired a controlling stake of 50 percent plus one share in Fertilizantes Tocantins, a leading fertilizer distribution company in Brazil. The transaction is expected to be close by the end of August, subject to regulatory approvals. Financial details were not disclosed

“The acquisition is in line with EuroChem’s strategy to strengthen its presence in the fast growing Latin American fertilizer market,” the Russian company said in a statement. “With Fertilizantes Tocantins’ market expertise, blending facilities, and established network of 2,000 customers, this acquisition will strengthen EuroChem’s capabilities in the region.”

Fertilizantes Tocantins was founded in 2003 and is located in Brazil’s north, northeast, and Midwest farming regions. The company’s fertilizer sales reached 740,000 mt in 2015. Under the terms of the acquisition, José Eduardo Motta, Fertilizantes Tocantins’ owner, will retain a significant interest in the venture while continuing to serve as CEO and overseeing operational management and the strategic growth of the business.

“With this backing from EuroChem, such an established global fertilizer producer, we are confident in our ability to significantly increase our market share in Brazil,” Motta said.

“The acquisition of Fertilizantes Tocantins creates compelling growth opportunities for EuroChem in Brazil, allowing us to significantly expand our offering of high-quality fertilizers to local farmers,” said Dmitry Strezhnev, EuroChem CEO. “With José Eduardo continuing as CEO, we are well-placed to tap into Brazil’s fast-growing fertilizer market.”

Crop Production Services (CPS) and Cargill AgHorizons (U.S.) have reached a binding purchase agreement whereby CPS will acquire 18 Cargill ag-retail locations in Nebraska, South Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, and Indiana, according to a July 6 announcement from Agrium Inc., the parent company of CPS.

Agrium said the 18 Cargill locations have annual revenues of more than $150 million. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory clearances, and does not involve Cargill’s Canadian crop input retail business. The transaction is expected to close by the end of the third quarter of 2016.

“This acquisition demonstrates our continued focus on growing our North American Ag-retail business, particularly in the highly desirable U.S. Cornbelt,” said Agrium’s president and CEO Chuck Magro. “This acquisition will allow us to capitalize on synergies related to the introduction of our proprietary products and services, and leveraging our extensive distribution network. We welcome the Cargill Ag-retail employees to the Agrium family and are excited to bring our agronomic expertise and quality products and services to growers in this important agricultural region.”

Magro noted that the locations are in regions where CPS currently has a limited presence. He said the acquisition will allow Agrium to capitalize on synergies and allow it to leverage its existing distribution network.

“Cargill will focus on being the world’s leading merchant of grain and oilseeds,” said Roger Watchorn, group leader of Cargill’s North American agricultural supply chain. “We remain steadfast in our commitment to help farmers succeed by ensuring they remain competitive in the global market and being as efficient as possible in getting products from origins to destinations.”

Cargill is based in Minnetonka, Minn., and is the largest privately held corporation in the U.S. It’s major businesses include trading, purchasing, and distributing grain and other agricultural commodities; livestock and feed production; food ingredients; industrial products and services; and financial services. The company has some149,000 employees in 70 countries.