All posts by hlancey@bloomberg.net

Partners Plan Green Ammonia Units in India

Ammonia, Clean Ammonia, Green Ammonia, Green Hydrogen, India, Low-Carbon

Reliance Industries Ltd., Larsen and Toubro, Greenko Group, and Welspun New Energy are planning to develop green hydrogen and ammonia units at the Deendayal Port Authority in Kandla, Gujarat, India. The mega project is estimated to attract investments of up to $12 billion, which would represent one of the largest investments in sustainable projects in India.

The project is targeting the production of 7 million mt/y of green ammonia and 1.4 million mt/y of green hydrogen by using electrolysis powered by renewable energy sources. Reliance, Greenko, and Welspun were all named as winners in India’s first auction for green hydrogen production subsidies in January, and are expected to receive 18.9-30 rupees per kilogram of hydrogen produced.

Martin 1Q Income Back to Black; Fertilizer, Sulfur Results Below Expectations

Earnings, Gulf Coast, Sulfur

Martin Midstream Partners LP reported first-quarter net income of $3.3 million on revenues of $180.8 million, compared to a year-ago $5.1 million net loss and $244.5 million, respectively. The company reported adjusted EBITDA of $30.4 million, up from the year-ago $21.7 million.

“The partnership had a strong quarter resulting in adjusted EBITDA of $30.4 million compared to guidance of $31.6 million,” said Bob Bondurant, President and CEO of Martin Midstream GP LLC, the general partner of the LP. “Demand in both the marine and land transportation divisions remains robust leading to outperformance in the transportation segment when compared to our forecast.”

Bondurant said lower-than-forecasted margins in the company’s fertilizer and lubricants businesses, along with extended Gulf Coast refinery turnarounds, resulted in lower sulfur receipts, negatively impacting results compared to first-quarter projections. “However, current strength in our land and marine transportation divisions should result in meeting our annual adjusted EBITDA guidance of $116.1 million,” he said.

Adjusted EBITDA for the Sulfur Services segment, which includes fertilizer and sulfur, was down to $6.7 million from the year-ago $7.2 million, and some 46% down from guidance of $9.8 million. The company cited lower margins in its molten sulfur division coupled with decreased sulfur prilling fees as a result of Gulf Coast refinery turnarounds, offset by increased sales volumes.

Fertilizer adjusted EBITDA was $4.2 million compared to guidance of $6.6 million, while sulfur was $2.5 million versus $3.2 million.

“Looking towards the second quarter, we continue to see solid sales volumes and believe that should continue throughout the quarter,” Bondurant said in an earnings call. “We still see headwinds regarding margin expansion. And as a result, there is some chance we might not fully achieve our second-quarter fertilizer forecast.”

Total Sulfur Services sales volumes were up 22%, to 165,000 lt from the year-ago 135,000 lt. Sulfur volumes were up 24%, to 92,000 lt from 74,000 lt, while fertilizer was up 20%, to 73,000 lt from 61,000 lt.

The unit saw a 19% drop in operating income, to $3.69 million from the year-ago $4.6 million, while revenues were off 6%, to $33.7 million from $35.7 million.

“For the quarter, growth capital expenditures totaled $6.2 million with $4.8 million for improvements at the Plainview facility related to the DSM Semichem Joint Venture,” added Bondurant. The jv will produce electronic-level sulfuric acid (ELSA) for the semiconductor industry (GM Feb. 16, p. 26; Oct. 21, 2022).

“Maintenance capital expenditures were $11.2 million for the quarter, including $5.3 million in refinery turnaround costs,” he said. “These higher than historical quarterly capital expenditures contributed to our adjusted leverage increasing slightly from 3.75 times at Dec. 31, 2023, to 3.81 times at March 31, 2024.”

Martin declared a quarterly cash distribution of $0.005 per unit for the quarter.

Intrepid Potash Inc. – Management Brief

Florida, Management Briefs

Intrepid Potash Inc. on April 17 announced that its Board of Directors has granted Bob Jornayvaz, Executive Chairman of the Board and CEO of the company, a temporary medical leave of absence, effective April 16, as he recovers from injuries sustained in a polo accident on April 6 in Florida (GM April 12, p. 26).

Matt Preston, Intrepid’s current Chief Financial Officer, has been appointed as acting Principal Executive Officer and Hugh Harvey, Intrepid’s co-founder, has been appointed as a Class III Director. The Board has also temporarily delegated all responsibilities of the Chairman of the Board to Barth Whitham, Intrepid’s Lead Director.

“Our thoughts and best wishes go out to Bob and his family as he recovers, and we are pleased to announce both the appointment of Matt Preston to acting principal executive officer and appointment of co-founder Hugh Harvey to the Board,” Whitham said. “Mr. Preston’s understanding of Intrepid’s operations, along with the addition of Intrepid’s co-founder and former director Mr. Harvey to our Board, will provide the necessary stability and continuity for Intrepid as we continue to execute on our strategic initiatives through this interim period.”  

In addition to being a co-founder, Harvey was a member of Intrepid’s Board from 2007-2022, including as the Executive Vice Chairman of the Board from 2010 to March 2020 and as Vice Chairman of the Board from March 2020 to February 2022. From 2007 until his retirement from Intrepid in 2020, Harvey served in various management roles, including Chief Technology Officer, Chief Operating Officer, and Executive Vice President of Technology.

Preston has been with Intrepid since 2008, serving as Chief Financial Officer since December 2021 and Principal Financial Officer since November 2019. Prior to becoming CFO, he served as Intrepid’s Vice President of Finance from November 2019 to December 2021 and Director of Budget and Forecast from April 2016 to November 2019. Prior to those roles, Preston served as Senior Manager of Budget and Forecast, Manager of Budget and Forecast, and Financial Analyst.

Bunge Global SA – Management Brief

Management Briefs, U.S.

St. Louis-based Bunge Global SA on April 16  announced the executive leadership team for the combined Bunge and Viterra business following the close of Bunge’s proposed $8.2 billion purchase of Viterra (GM June 16, 2023). The company will be led by Bunge CEO Greg Heckman and Bunge CFO John Neppl.

Viterra CEO David Mattiske will become Co-Chief Operating Officer along with Julio Garros, Bunge’s Co-President, Agribusiness. In their roles as Co-COOs, they will jointly oversee the commercial activities of the future combined organization, which includes commodity value chains, country/regional structures, Centers of Expertise, and Industrial Operations & Safety.

“The future combined company will expand its reach into more crops and countries, offering farmers greater market access and differentiated, value-added solutions in all key origins,” said Heckman. “Food, feed, and fuel customers will benefit from a broader product portfolio and expanded global supply options. Creating the Co-COO positions ensures we have the right level of leadership focus on the multiple commercial and operational streams so that we identify the strengths of our current organizations and leverage them globally as we come together as one Bunge.”

Also serving on the executive leadership team of the future combined company will be Kellie Sears, Chief Human Resources Officer; Joe Podwika, Chief Legal Officer; Robert Wagner, Chief Risk Officer; Pierre Mauger, Chief Transformation Officer; Debra King, Chief Technology Officer; and Robert Coviello, Chief Sustainability Officer and Government Affairs.

Other key commercial leaders of the future combined organization include Christos Dimopoulos who assumes the newly created role of Executive Vice President, Global Markets. He will partner with the Co-COOs to deliver results by driving the commercial strategy and risk deployment, while being directly responsible for the ocean freight, global logistics, research, financial services, central hedge desk, and special risk units.

Aaron Buettner will continue to lead Food Solutions, which includes the tropical oils value chain, specialty oils, food protein, lecithin, and corn milling. He will be responsible for leading Bunge’s food go-to-market strategy, working closely with the value chains to grow business with food customers.

These leadership appointments are effective once the transaction closes, which is anticipated to occur in mid-2024, subject to satisfaction of customary closing conditions, including receipt of regulatory approvals.

BRANDT Inc. – Management Brief

Florida, Management Briefs

BRANDT Inc., a professional agronomic retailer and manufacturer of specialty ag products, announced that Matthew Ingram will join its leadership team in Tampa, Fla., as Vice President of Strategy, effective April 30, 2024. In this new role, Ingram will help the company’s senior leaders on refining corporate strategy and optimizing cross-selling opportunities across the BRANDT organization.

“When we have a chance to bring someone like Matt on board, we will absolutely jump at it,” said Rick Brandt, President and CEO. “We’re always looking to build out our bench. Matt is knowledgeable and smart and he brings a depth of understanding around industry players and partnerships that belies his years. We expect him to help lead us into the future.”

Ingram has spent the last 11 years at Winfield United, where he most recently served as Senior Director and Business Unit Lead for the western US, overseeing a $2 billion/year portfolio of seed, crop protection, fertilizer, and services. He has an MBA from the University of Illinois and a B.S. in Agribusiness and Economics from Southern Illinois University.

Gulf Coast Ammonia in Phased Commissioning

Ammonia, Gulf Coast, News Briefs, Texas

Gulf Coast Ammonia LLC’s (GCA) new 1.3 million mt/y Texas City ammonia plant is in “phased commissioning,” a company spokesperson told Green Markets on April 17.

No timeline for completion or operation was given, but industry sources said production may be pushed back to the third quarter. In December, knowledgeable sources were saying the expected startup was soon (GM Dec. 15, 2023), though major players in developing the project either had no updates or did not respond to inquiries.

Those players include Lotus Infrastructure Partners (formerly Starwood Energy Group Global LLC), Greenwich, Conn., Mabanaft GmbH & Co. KG, Hamburg, Germany, and Air Products, Allentown, Pa. The project was initially expected to come up in the first half of 2023.

When the GCA project was announced (GM Jan. 10, 2020), the company said it had already concluded long-term offtake agreements for all 1.3 million mt/y of capacity, with Mabanaft, which will be acting as GCA’s operating partner, expected to market some 500,000 mt/y.

While never officially confirmed, major industry players believe that OCP has a sizeable offtake agreement with GCA, if not the entire remainder (GM March 18, 2022) of the capacity.

BHP Jansen 1 Ahead of Schedule, 44% Complete

Canada, News Briefs, Potash, Saskatchewan

BHP reported on April 18 that its Jansen Stage 1 potash project in Saskatchewan remains ahead of its initial schedule and is now 44% complete. The first production target is by the end of calendar year 2026. Capital expenditures are expected to be $5.72 billion with capacity of 4.15 million mt/y.

Jansen Stage 2, which reached final approval in October 2023, is expected to be up in fiscal year 2029. Capital expenditures are put at $4.86 billion with capacity of 4.36 million mt/y.

Ammonia Leak Sends 14 to Hospital

Ammonia, News Briefs, U.S.

A small leak in an 8,000-gallon ammonia tank at the Fresh N’Lean meal preparation facility in Moosic, Pa., around 9:40 am on April 15 sent some 14 people to the hospital with minor injuries and caused the evacuation of 105 employees, according to The Scranton Times-Tribune.

Local authorities praised the company for immediately reporting the leak and evacuating employees. They were able to return to the building before noon.

Thai Ammonia Leak Injures More Than 140

Ammonia, News Briefs, Thailand

An ammonia leak just before midnight on April 17 at the Banglamung Ice Plant in Chonburi, Thailand, affected at least 141 people, some 12 seriously, within a one-kilometer radius of the plant, according to the Organization of Asia-Pacific News Agencies.

The injured were treated onsite, and those more seriously injured were transported to hospitals. The factory and those living within a two-mile radius were evacuated. The situation had reportedly returned to normal by 3:00 am on April 18 and residents were allowed to return home.

Barges Break Loose on Ohio River

News Briefs, Ohio River, U.S.

An estimated 26 barges broke loose and floated down the Ohio River in Pittsburgh, Pa., around 11:25 pm on April 12 after heavy rains caused flooding conditions. Officials rushed to close bridges. The Sewickley Bridge was struck around 2:00 pm on April 13, but was soon reopened after an inspection.

Campbell Transportation Co. Inc., the owner of the barges, said 23 were loaded open hopper barges and three were empty. Most of the barges were reported to be carrying coal, with at least one carrying fertilizer. None were carrying hazardous materials.

As of late April 16, Campbell said 22 barges had been secured and brought under control. Two barges remained positioned against the Emsworth Lock and Dam, while one was against the Dashields Lock and Dam. Using sonar technology, a previously unaccounted for barge was confirmed to be submerged in the Dashields Pool.

The company said the Coast Guard had lifted the safety zone and reopened river navigation between Emsworth Locks and Dam and Dashields Locks and Dam. At least two marinas were damaged by the barges and a boat club, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, which also reported that at least five barges were believed to have gone over the Dashields Dam.