All posts by mickeybarb@charter.net

Koch to Increase Dodge City UAN Production

Featured, News, Southern Plains, UAN

Koch Fertilizer, Wichita, reported on Aug. 16 that it is planning a $30 million optimization project at its Dodge City, Kan., nitrogen plant to increase UAN production by 35,000 st/y.

“We are dedicated to being our customer’s long-term supplier of choice by providing the products they value most,” said Scott McGinn, Koch Fertilizer Executive Vice President. “This project will increase production to meet growing UAN demand locally, as well as across western Kansas and eastern Colorado.”

Koch said the project will further improve the facility’s reliability, as well as environmental and safety performance, through equipment and process upgrades.

“This investment strengthens the long-term vitality of the Dodge City site,” said Paul Liddle, Dodge City Plant Manager. “We continue to find ways to enhance our reliability and productivity, while using fewer resources and respecting the environment, which benefits our employees, our customers, and the community.”

Construction is scheduled to begin in early 2023, and the optimized processes are expected to be fully operational by the end of the year. While Koch does not discuss specific production capacities at its sites, Dodge City approximate capacities include ammonia 300,000 st/y, UAN 230,000 st/y, and ammonium nitrate 100,000 st/y, according to Green Markets data.

“This investment reflects Koch Fertilizer’s commitment to continued growth and reinvestment in our plants,” said McGinn.

The Dodge City investment follows three recent Koch Fertilizer expansion projects, which totaled $380 million and included Beatrice, Neb.; Fort Dodge, Iowa; and Enid, Okla. (GM Feb. 11, p. 1). The $90 million Beatrice project was completed in 2021 and added 75,000 st/y of UAN capacity.

The $140 million Fort Dodge and $150 million Enid projects are on schedule to be completed this year. The Fort Dodge project will add 85,000 st/y of ammonia capacity, while Enid is expected to allow the company to produce an additional 300,000 st/y of downstream products (urea, DEF, SuperU®, and UAN).

Heringer Posts 2Q Loss on Lower Margins

Brazil, Earnings, News, Specialty

Grupo Heringer, Viana, Brazil, reported a second-quarter loss of R$94.7 million, down from the year-ago net income of R$144.7 million. The company cited lower margins, mainly impacted by high input costs and the sale of the Uberaba unit during the year-ago quarter (GM Feb. 26, 2021), which resulted in revenues of R$31 million at the time.

EBITDA fell to a positive R$24.1 million from the year-ago R$105.9 million, while revenues were up 90.2% on higher prices to R$1.08 billion from the year-ago R$568.6 million.

Second-quarter fertilizer volumes nudged up 1.8%, to 242,124 mt from the year-ago 237,769 mt. Conventional tons were up 6.1%, to 122,000 mt from the year-ago 115,000 mt, while specialty dropped 2.4%, to 120,000 mt from 123,000 mt.

Heringer remained in the plus column for the first-half results, posting net income of R$33.7 million compared to the year-ago R$137.3 million. EBITDA was R$109.3 million, down from R$209.7 million.

First-half revenues were R$2.31 billion, up 76.7% from the year-ago R$1.31 billion, though volumes were down 11.6%, to 543,363 mt from 614,319 mt. Both conventional and specialty volumes were off. Conventional dropped 12.6%, to 271,000 mt from 310,000 mt, while specialty were down 10.5%, to 272,000 mt from 304,000 mt.

BHP Updates on Jansen; 2023 Stage 1 Spend is $740 Million

Australia, News, News Briefs, Potash, Saskatchewan

BHP Group Ltd., Melbourne, reported on Aug. 16 that the production shafts at its Jansen potash project in Saskatchewan are complete. It said that the $5.7 billion Stage 1 project is on track and the company is working to bring forward first production into 2026. Stage 1 would produce 4.35 million mt/y of potash. The company said it is 8% complete.

BHP said it expects Jansen capital expenditures of $740 million for financial year 2023 for Stage 1. It said it will continue to focus on civil and mechanical construction on the surface and underground, as well as equipment procurement and port construction.

BHP is also assessing options to accelerate Stage 2, which would add another 4 million mt/y.

In addition to Jansen, BHP will study plans to expand its top-earning iron ore unit to 330 million mt/y of production, and is continuing to assess options to lift volumes in copper and nickel.

BHP Reports Record Profits on Commodity Prices, Upbeat on China Outlook

Australia, Earnings, News

BHP Group Ltd., Melbourne, posted its highest ever full-year profit on record commodity prices, and will push ahead with growth options on a stronger demand outlook in China.

CEO Mike Henry said China’s emergence from the COVID-19 lockdowns would provide a “tailwind” to the global economy, in a counterpoint to jittery sentiment on China following a swath of surprisingly weak data.

“We think that over the next 6-12 months, China, if anything, is going to provide some stability to global growth and will help offset some of the slowing that we see elsewhere,” Henry said. China typically accounts for more than 60% of BHP’s revenue.

BHP’s result was “better than expected,” Goldman Sachs Group Inc. analysts Paul Young and Hugo Nicolaci wrote in a note, cited by Bloomberg. But they warned that stronger currencies and weaker commodity prices were key downside risks, particularly if China’s property sector does not recover in the next year.

Rival miners have cautioned over a weaker outlook, and Rio Tinto Group last month reported a decline in first-half profits and halved its dividend. Gold giant Newmont Mining Corp. and copper producer First Quantum Minerals Ltd. have also warned investors in recent weeks on the impact of inflationary pressures.

BHP, which is developing the Jansen potash project in Saskatchewan (see related story), reported profit from operations of $34.10 billion on revenue of $65.1 billion for the year ending June 30, 2022, up from the year-ago $25.5 billion and $56.92 billion, respectively. EBITDA moved up to $40.63 billion from $35.07 billion.

Yara Invests in Autonomous Tractor Tech

Eastern Cornbelt, News, News Briefs, Norway

Yara Growth Ventures, the investment arm of Yara International ASA, reported on Aug. 18 an investment in Sabanto Ag, Chicago. Founded by Craig Rupp in 2018, Sabanto Ag is bringing to market hardware kits to retrofit existing tractors for autonomous operations. This offering is complemented with software for operations planning and a farming-as-a-service business model.

“Getting to know Sabanto Ag, what impressed us most is their high-caliber team and how they were able to adapt their technology to various tractor makes and farming operations with unparalleled speed and capital efficiency,” said Björn Heinz of Yara Growth Ventures. “Going forward, we are excited to see Sabanto Ag alleviating key concerns in modern agriculture: high equipment cost and labor shortage.”

“We started Sabanto with our sights set on fixing the lack of labor and resetting the out-of-control capital expenses in agricultural machinery,” said Rupp, Founder and CEO. “We see a future of smarter, smaller, lighter, less expensive, and more sustainable swarms of autonomous equipment, substituting horsepower and weight for time. We’ve assembled a team of actual ag-experienced engineers and scientists, working alongside actual farmers, proving this isn’t a just a thought exercise.”

This Series A funding round was led by Fulcrum Global Capital with further contributions from Cavallo Ventures, DCVC Bio, Hico Capital, Johnsonville Holdings, and Trimble.

Orange Madison Joins Growmark; Announces Name Change to EverGro

Eastern Cornbelt, Featured, News, Southeast

Growmark Inc., Bloomington, Ill., announced on Aug. 15 that Orange Madison Cooperative, a full service co-op with five locations in Virginia, is the newest FS member company to join the Growmark System. Effective Sept. 1, Orange Madison will also be changing its name to EverGro FS.

“We are pleased to welcome Orange Madison Cooperative as an FS member company in the Growmark System,” said Growmark CEO Mark Orr. “They have the same value-added and go-to-market mindset as our FS Members. Orange Madison Cooperative complements our Mid-Atlantic operations and will be a terrific opportunity to grow the FS brand along the East Coast.”

Based in Orange, Va., Orange Madison was established in 1933 and provides products and services in agronomy, energy, animal health, and farm supplies from central Virginia locations at Orange, Madison, Front Royal, Upperville, and Louisa. Through a partnership established in October 2020, Growmark has provided Orange Madison with crop inputs, fuels, propane, and a variety of customer support and marketing services.

“Growmark is a like-minded business partner and will help take Orange Madison Cooperative to the next level with technology adaptation and bolstering our supply chain network for customers,” said Justin Dreckman, Orange Madison Cooperative General Manager. “We believe the FS brand will have excellent recognition in the agriculture space in Virginia within the next five years.”

Growmark is an agricultural cooperative serving almost 400,000 customers across North America with agronomy, energy, and logistics products and services, facility engineering and construction, and grain marketing and risk management services. Growmark owns the FS trademark, which is used by member co-ops.

Tessenderlo Acquires Lannate® Crop Protection Line from Corteva

Europe, News, News Briefs

Tessenderlo Group, Brussels, announced on Aug. 17 that its subsidiary, Tessenderlo Kerley Inc., has acquired the crop protection product line Lannate® from Corteva Agriscience. Tessenderlo Kerley’s NovaSource® business unit (Agro segment) will add the Lannate® product line to its existing, diversified portfolio of niche crop protection products. The Lannate products are used to manage specific difficult to control pests in a variety of crops such as sweet corn, onions, and garlic.

“As a leader in the agriculture industry, preserving critical crop protection tools for growers and ensuring proper product stewardship is at the forefront of all that we do,” said Jonathan Akins, Ph.D., Senior Vice President, NovaSource. “It is crucial that we provide the necessary tools for farmers to grow safe, abundant, and affordable crops, and Lannate® is a proven product that growers rely on to meet their complex and evolving crop protection needs.”

Tessenderlo said the transaction will have no material impact on results.

Toyota Studies Blue Ammonia Production in Egypt with MOPCO and Abu Qir

Blue Ammonia, Egypt, Japan, News, News Briefs

Toyota has prepared a preliminary study for the production of blue ammonia with Egypt’s MOPCO and Abu Qir Fertilizers, according to an Aug. 16 statement filed by Abu Qir to the Cairo Stock Exchange. The filing did not specify how carbon dioxide will be captured and stored.

The filing simply stated Toyota and did not specify which company within the 17-member Japanese Toyota Group was involved in the filing. However, Toyota Tsusho Group last year signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Co. (EGAS) and Egyptian Petrochemicals Holding Co. (ECHEM) to study the best opportunities in the oil and gas sector to implement projects for extracting and storing carbon dioxide to produce blue ammonia utilizing Japanese technologies (GM Sept. 24, 2021). Toyota Tsusho has also been involved in other projects in Africa.