All posts by mickeybarb@charter.net

Nuinsco Announces Initial MRE of Ontario Rare Earth/Phosphate Project

Canada, News, News Briefs, Phosphate

Nuinsco Resources Ltd., Toronto, on May 31 announced an initial Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) on its Prairie Lake Critical Minerals and Phosphate Project located near Terrace Bay, Ont. The project, which contains total rare earth oxides (TREO), niobium, and phosphate has an MRE consisting of 15.6 million mt Indicated Mineral Resource and 871.8 million mt Inferred Mineral Resource in accordance with National Instrument 43-101. A Preliminary Economic Assessment on the project will commence shortly.

“The suite of economically significant mineralization identified in the MRE includes neodymium, praseodymium, niobium, scandium, and phosphate; demand for all is projected to steeply increase over the coming years through expanding electrification and implementation of “green” technologies to combat climate change, and to sustain and improve agricultural productivity globally,” said Nuinsco CEO Paul Jones.

The company noted that the Prairie Lake site is close to the TransCanada Highway, rail, power and shipping infrastructure.

Nuinsco is currently focused on prospective opportunities in Canada and Egypt. It currently has four projects in Ontario. In addition to Prairie Lake, it has the Sunbeam gold property near Atikokan, the Dash Lake gold property near Terrace Bay, and the Zig Zag Lake property (lithium, tantalum) near Armstrong. In addition, Nuinsco has an agreement for gold exploitation at the El Sid project in the Eastern Desert of Egypt.

Prime Minister Inaugurates Nano Urea Plant

India, News, News Briefs, Specialty, Urea

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on May 29 inaugurated Nano Urea (Liquid) Plant constructed at Indian Farmers Fertiliser Cooperative Ltd. (IFFCO), in Kalol in Gandhinagar.

IFFCO said the product could cut conventional urea use by at least 50%. IFFCO said a 500 ml bottle of the product, which contains 40,000 ppm of nitrogen, will replace at least one bag of conventional urea, thereby reducing input costs and also bringing down the cost of logistics and warehousing (GM June 4, 2021). The plant can produce 150,000 bottles per day.

ICL, Yara Win IFA Awards

News, News Briefs

The International Fertilizer Association (IFA) on June 1 awarded its 2022 Green Leaf Award for excellence in safety, health, and the environment to ICL Iberia and Yara India. ICL Iberia, Suria plant, Spain, received the award in the phosphate/potash producer category. Yara India’s Babrala plant in Uttar Pradesh received the award in the nitrogen producer category.

IFA runs the award every two years, and received a record 25 eligible applications for 2022.

ICL Iberia’s application involved an environmental case study on actions taken to further lower greenhouse gas emissions at the Suria plant and overall management for safety, health, and the environment (SHE) of a fertilizer mining site.

Yara India demonstrated a world class SHE management program with a hands-on approach across the plant and active monitoring, including during the Covid-19 response.

Arab Potash, Jordan, earned second place in phosphate/potash producer category. In particular, the judges noted the company’s water conservation innovations.

Fatima Fertilizer Company Ltd., Pakistan, achieved second place in the nitrogen producer category. Judges cited exceptional safety performance.

Petrobras Begins UFN-III Sales Process

Ammonia, Brazil, News, News Briefs, Nitrogen, Urea

Brazil’s state-owned Petróleo Brasileiro SA (Petrobras), Rio de Janeiro, on May 31 said it has begun the process once again for the sale of Nitrogen Fertilizers Unit III (UFN-III), located in Três Lagoas, in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul. Two attempts to sell the plant to Acron Group, Moscow, fell through (GM April 29, p. 30).

Petrobras said the construction of UFN-III began in September 2011 but was interrupted in December 2014, with physical progress of about 81%. Upon completion, the unit will have a projected urea and ammonia production capacity of 3,600 m/d and 2,200 m/d, respectively. The buyer is expected to complete the plant.

Petrobras hired Bradesco BBI, Osasco, Sao Paulo, as the exclusive financial advisor to sell UFN-III, according to a June 1 report by Valor International.

Santos, Yara Pilbara Sign New Gas Deal

Ammonia, Australia, News, News Briefs

Santos, Western Australia’s largest domestic gas supplier, said on June 1 that it has entered into new gas supply agreements with Yara Pilbara Fertilisers Pty Ltd (Yara) to supply natural gas to Yara’s ammonia plant on the Burrup Peninsula in Western Australia.

Santos will supply over 120 petajoules of natural gas over five years, starting at the completion of Santos’ current agreement with Yara in 2023.

In addition to the gas supply agreement, Santos and Yara will also work together to explore decarbonization opportunities in Western Australia, including carbon capture and storage.

Santos estimates that it supplies around 40% of WA’s gas, and is also a major Asia Pacific LNG supplier.

First Ammonia-Powered, Zero-Emissions Tractor Demonstrated

Ammonia, News, News Briefs, Northeast

Amogy Inc., Brooklyn, N.Y., on June 1 announced the successful demonstration of the first-ever ammonia-powered, zero-emissions tractor. The demonstration took place on May 25 at Advanced Energy Center, located in the Research & Development Park at Stony Brook University in Stony Brook, N.Y.

Amogy said its ammonia-to-power technology was successfully integrated into a John Deere mid-size standard tractor. The system comprises a standard liquid-storage tank and ammonia-cracking modules that converts the ammonia into hydrogen, which is integrated into a 100 kW hybrid hydrogen fuel cell system.

Amogy said the system provides consistent primary power for several hours per refueling, maintaining the functionality and duration requirements operators rely on which it said has never been offered with other alternative energy solutions.

“We’re thrilled to be demonstrating our zero-emission ammonia power solution in action in a tractor for the first time ever,” said Amogy CEO Seonghoon Woo. “Ammonia is a viable zero-emission fuel for all heavy-duty vehicles, but especially farming and agriculture, where the readily-available chemical has been used as a fertilizer for decades.”

Amogy said it has achieved a twenty-fold increase in the power capacity of its technology over the past year. It believes this demonstration and future ones, including Class 8 trucks and shipping vessels to be demonstrated in the next 12 months, will accelerate the adoption of ammonia as the next generation fuel to replace diesel engines.

Founded in 2020 by four MIT PhD alumni, Amogy aims to accelerate the decarbonization of the heavy-duty transportation sector. The company has been invested in by AP Ventures, Amazon’s Climate Pledge Fund, and DCVC.

Major Zinc Companies Merged

Europe, Houston, TX, News, News Briefs, Northeast, Specialty, Zinc

Investment firm Aterian Investment Partners, New York City, said on June 1 that it has combined U.S. Zinc, Houston, and EverZinc, Loncin, Belgium, two of the largest producers of zinc chemical products, into what Aterian said will be the pre-eminent global zinc chemistry business.

The combined company will operate under the EverZinc name, and will be headquartered in Houston. The company will serve several markets, including agriculture, feed, personal care, alkaline, storage and rechargeable batteries, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, textiles, paints and coatings, and rubber, from 14 facilities located throughout North America, Europe, and Asia.

Vincent Dujardin, CEO of EverZinc, will lead the combined company as President and CEO. Joel Hawthorne, President and CEO of U.S. Zinc, will serve as Vice Chairman of the new EverZinc enterprise and member on the combined Board of Directors.

The 70-year old, U.S. Zinc produces zinc oxide, fine zinc powder, and zinc metal at four facilities in Tennessee and Texas. Aterian acquired U.S. Zinc in 2018.

The 185-year old EverZinc produces specialty zinc materials, including fine zinc powders, zinc oxides, battery zinc powders, and Zano®, an ultra-fine zinc oxide, at some 10 production site located in Belgium, Canada, China, the Netherlands, Norway, and Malaysia.

The new company intends to source a majority of its critical raw materials from third-party byproduct streams by converting used zinc material already available in the marketplace, thus encouraging greater industry-wide sustainability.

“Aterian will continue to support EverZinc through investment in capacity, technology, and innovation,” said Joshua Ciampa, Aterian Managing Director. “Global applications for zinc are reaching a critical inflection point, and we are pleased to be in a position to leverage our European or Asian technology for capacity in North America, and vice-versa.”

CBH Opens New Esperance Fertilizer Facility

Australia, News, News Briefs

The CBH Group, Perth, said on May 31 that it has opened its new 20,000 mt fertilizer storage facility in Esperance in Western Australia. After achieving a 47% increase in sales last year, CBH’s fertilizer business has entered a new phase of growth with the Esperance facility now fully operational, according to the company.

“As a core function of the co-operative, CBH Fertiliser is committed to delivering on the strategy of reducing growers’ on-farm input costs and improving the consistency of fertilizer supply in Western Australia,” said CBH Chairman Simon Stead. “The opening of our new Esperance facility will enable us to bring surety of supply to Esperance growers and bring further competitiveness to the market.”

Head of Fertiliser David Pritchard said that CBH is aiming to fill a gap in the market.

“Given the remoteness of the Esperance Port Zone, we believe there is a gap in the market from a supply and pricing perspective,” said David Pritchard, CBH Head of Fertilizer. “We have also seen demand for fertilizer, particularly nitrogen, grow exponentially in recent years, with the existing market struggling to keep pace during key times.

“We hope to execute 25,000 mt at the site this year, which will enable us to get the process right and get growers comfortable with new competition,” added Pritchard.

The new facility is owned by logistics provider Qube Holdings Ltd., Sydney, and operated by CBH Fertiliser. The purpose-built warehouse is designed for fertilizer storage, blending, and loading of trucks with a full range of granular phosphates, nitrogen, potash, and sulfur products. CBH said the latest Yargus blending equipment was installed to allow for accurate and high-capacity blending of multiple products, plus specialties such as liquid copper, zinc, and fungicides.

CBH said the facility includes a drive-through, under cover area for trucks, a CBH-owned and operated front-end loader, and a weighbridge to allow for greater control of costs and efficiencies at the site.

Despite a volatile global fertilizer market from a price and supply perspective, CBH Fertiliser said it has worked hard to ensure that all shipments contracted for 2022 arrive safely and on time.

“We strongly believe that we have set the benchmark for urea pricing across the past few months and are happy to share this pricing with growers to continually challenge input costs,” said Pritchard.

Technip Picked for Norwegian Green NH3 Plant

France, Green Ammonia, News, News Briefs, Scandinavia

French engineering firm Technip Energies, Paris, has been selected by Iverson eFuels AS, a Special Purpose Vehicle between Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP), Hy2gen, and Trafigura, to perform the engineering design of a complete green ammonia plant at Sauda, Rogaland, Norway (GM Feb. 4, p. 30).

Phase 1 of the project includes a green ammonia plant, including utilities, offsites, and electrical substation connected to the existing power grid, and pipeline, ammonia storage, and offloading system. The planned green ammonia production will be used as fuel for the maritime sector.

The Iverson project will have an initial electrolysis capacity of 300 megawatts to produce 600 mt/d of green ammonia. Iverson eFuels AS has targeted 2027 for the plant to be operational, with a significant scale up production in the future.