All posts by mickeybarb@charter.net

New China-Laos Railway Moves First Potash; Sino-Agri Eyes Production, Export Ramp-Up

China, News, News Briefs, Potash

The first potash to be railed on the new China-Laos Railway left the Laos capital of Vientiane on Dec. 3 for China, soon after the cross-border railway was officially inaugurated, according to a report by China’s Xinhua news agency.

The potash – aboard the first train to use the new rail link – was produced by China-Laos joint venture Sino-Agri International Potash Co. The report did not indicate how much potash was aboard the train, however, saying only “potash products were among the cargo loaded on the train.”

The 1,035-km electrified passenger and cargo railway connects Kunming in southwest China’s Yunnan Province with Vientiane. With a maximum operating speed of 160 km/h, the travel time from Vientiane to Kunming is about 10 hours, including customs clearance time, according to the report.

The operation of the railway will help boost potassium production in Laos and its exportation, Sino-Agri General Manager Tong Yongheng told Xinhua.

The report cited the Vice President of the Lao National Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Valy Vetsaphong, who is also advisor to the Lao Prime Minister, saying that the railway “will convert [landlocked] Laos from being geographically disadvantaged, by taking advantage of its location to a regional land-linked hub.”

Many business operators will switch to exporting products by using the new railway, which is expected to cut the cost of transport by 30-40 percent compared to traveling by road, Vetsaphong said.

Construction of the rail section in Laos from the border town of Boten to Vientiane began in December 2016, and construction of the section in China from the city of Yuxi to the border town of Mohan started 12 months earlier. The railway fully adopts Chinese technical standards, according to the report.

Tong reported that Sino-Agri’s first 1 million mt/y potassium production unit in Laos’ central Khammouane Province recently entered the pilot phase, according to the report. He added the company now is eyeing the second and third production lines of 1 million mt/y each.

Laos produced an estimated 750,000 mt of potassium chloride in 2020, according to IFA data, with all of the output exported.

Bolivia Exports 8,474 Mt of Urea in October

News, News Briefs, South America, Urea

Bolivia in October exported its first urea on record since June 2020, according to the latest Trade Data Monitor (TDM) statistics. The tons were shipped to Brazil.

The country’s only ammonia and urea plant – the Bulo facility in Bolivia’s central Cochabamba province – restarted production on Sept. 6 this year after an almost 22-month production hiatus (GM Sept. 10, p. 29).

The plant’s operator, state-run oil and gas company Yacimientos Petrolíferos Fiscales Bolivianos (YPFB), at the time said the company was targeting the sale of up 150,000 mt of urea from Bulo Bulo during the remainder of 2021. Of that volume, around 125,000 mt was targeted for export sale, while the balance would go to the domestic market.

The Bulo Bulo plant has a nameplate capacity of 2,100 mt/d of granular urea. At the time of the production re-start, YPFB said the facility was working at a 70 percent utilization.

Bolivia exported 305,040 mt of urea in 2019 and 21,769 mt in 2020, according to TDM statistics. The 2020 export volumes were understood to have come from inventory.

In addition to Brazil, Bulo Bulo urea previously has been exported to four other countries, including Argentina, Paraguay, and Peru,

The plant began operations in September 2017, but has suffered a series of operational problems since start-up.

The most recent production stoppage – arguably the most serious and far-reaching – began in November 2019 (GM Jan. 31, 2020). According to comments in March 2021 by YPFB Executive President Wilson Zelaya, the shutdown of operations at the plant was not done according to proper procedures and resulted in some damage to equipment.

Australia’s Woodside Expands Hydrogen Portfolio in the U.S., Inks Hyzon MOU

Australia, Hydrogen, News, News Briefs

Australian oil and gas producer Woodside Energy Ltd. this week announced plans to expand its portfolio of hydrogen production opportunities in the U.S., having secured land in Ardmore, Okla., for future development of a modular hydrogen facility and entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Mendon, N.Y.-based Hyzon Motors Inc.

Woodside said it is also progressing similar land acquisition opportunities aligned to growth markets in the U.S.

Subject to approvals and customer demand, the Australian energy company said the proposed H2OK project at Ardmore involves the construction of an initial 290 megawatt (MW) facility, which will use electrolysis to produce up to 90 mt/d of liquid hydrogen for the heavy transport sector. The location offers the capacity for expansion up to 550 MW and 180 mt/d, it said.

The project is targeting a final investment decision in the second half of next year, and first liquid hydrogen production in 2025.

Woodside said it is also taking a proactive role in developing the U.S. and Australian hydrogen markets. It said the company and Hyzon Motors, a supplier of zero-emissions hydrogen fuel cell-powered commercial and heavy transport vehicles, intend to explore opportunities to work together on demand stimulation, supply and infrastructure solutions and coordinated advocacy.

The Australian company said following the completion of Woodside’s proposed merger with BHP’s petroleum business (GM Aug. 17, p. 36), it would have “a significant presence” in the North American market. The completion of the merger is targeted for the second quarter of next year.

In Australia, Woodside already has announced plans to develop phased hydrogen and ammonia production projects in Perth (H2Perth) (GM Oct. 29, p. 35) and in northern Tasmania (H2TAS) to supply both Australian and international markets.

The company also announced in October a new collaboration with renewable energy technology company Heliogen involving the construction of a 5 MW commercial-scale demonstration facility in California using Heliogen’s concentrated solar power technology.

Hyzon Motors 12 months ago inked a collaboration agreement with BayoTech Inc., Albuquerque, N.M., an on-site hydrogen production and nitrogen technology provider, for the supply of low-zero-carbon hydrogen to accelerate the development of hydrogen fueling infrastructure for Hyzon’s customers. Under the agreement, BayoTech was to provide the methane conversion technology.

BayoTech reached a lease agreement for a hydrogen generator with Nutrien Ltd. in April 2020 for one of Nutrien’s nitrogen fertilizer plants. Under the deal, Nutrien was to operate the unit for supplemental hydrogen, while BayoTech would perform maintenance and 24/7 remote monitoring. Nutrien at the time confirmed the lease agreement, but said it had not finalized a location for the hydrogen generator (GM April 24, 2020).

BayoTech describes its on-site, low-cost hydrogen production solutions as “a first step in creating locally-produced ammonia, eliminating transportation costs, and reducing carbon footprint”.

The company plans to build 50 hydrogen hubs across the U.S. and U.K. in the next three years, BayoTech CEO Mo Vargas said earlier this month.

Canadian Junior Stans Energy Inks MOC for Development of Russian K Deposit

Canada, News, News Briefs, Potash, Russia

Canadian resource development junior Stans Energy Corp., Toronto, said it has signed a Memorandum of Cooperation (MOC) with Russian company TradePromService LLC (TPS) for an option to acquire 100 percent of the Yakshinskoye potash deposit in the Komi Republic in northwest Russia.

Stans and TPS have agreed to undertake a project development program, which will result in a NI 43-101 compliant measured mineral resource estimate, a pilot ISL production testing, and a bankable feasibility study upon completion of the first two steps, Stans said in a Dec. 7 statement.

It said the option agreement negotiations will begin upon completion of the measured mineral resources report. Funding for the steps prior to the option agreement is the obligation of TPS.

Stans cited the JORC report prepared by Germany’s Ercosplan Group in July 2015 using data from 18 drill holes, and which estimates the indicated mineral resources of the Yakshinskoye potash deposit at Sylvinite: 189 million mt at 23.9 percent KCl; and Carnallite: 935 million mt at 13.9 percent KCl.

The pre-feasibility study prepared by Ercosplan in December 2015 recommends solution mining as the best option for the carnallite horizons which should be mined at phase one of deposit development. Ercosplan provided a business-financial model for a 1 million mt/y production rate.

Stans describes itself as a resource development company focused on advancing rate and specialty metals properties and processing technologies.

Yara, Sumitomo Chemical Explore Clean Ammonia Collaboration In Japan

Ammonia, Japan, News, News Briefs, Scandinavia

Yara International ASA , Oslo, and Japan’s Sumitomo Chemical Co. Ltd. are partnering up to explore clean ammonia collaboration in Japan.

Yara announced on Dec. 10 that the two companies had inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the potential supply of clean ammonia to Sumitomo Chemical for its use in chemicals production.

Under this agreement, Yara and Sumitomo will examine clean ammonia supply for the Japanese company’s use in petrochemicals, plastics production, and/or energy distribution, based out of Sumitomo Chemical’s plants domestically in Japan

The collaboration would accelerate Japan’s green energy transition and build upon the growing momentum associated with clean ammonia, said Yara. Japan has set targets to grow the nation’s ammonia fuel demand to 3 million mt/y by 2030, and 30 million mt/y by 2050, each as part of its initiative to cut CO2 emissions and reach carbon neutrality.

Shortages of Urea Used to Make AdBlue Threaten Australia’s Transport Industry

Australia, News, News Briefs, Urea

Shortages of urea, which is used to make AdBlue solution – the diesel engine anti-pollution additive – are threatening to bring Australia’s transport industry, which is heavily reliant on diesel trucks, to a halt, the Australian Broadcasting Corp. reported late last week, citing the country’s National Road Transport Association CEO Warren Clark. According to Clark, the supply of urea from China has dried up.

The transport association fears Australia’s supply chain could collapse within eight weeks unless China lifts its export ban on urea, according to the report.

China supplies around 80 percent of Australia’s diesel-grade urea, Clark said, and he is calling on Australia’s Trade Minister Dan Tehan to “find an alternative source.”

Incitec Pivot Ltd. (IPL), Southbank, Melbourne, in a statement regarding the supply of AdBlue solution, issued on Dec. 10, said it supplies around 10 percent of the Australian market for AdBlue solution and is the only Australian manufacturer to make the solution from urea melt.

The company said the remaining 90 percent of the Australian AdBlue market is reliant on imports of technical trade urea.

Worries about the current AdBlue supply shortages in the country have been compounded by the impending closure of IPL’s Gibson Island plant at Brisbane at the end of next year (GM Nov. 12, p. 1).

IPL said “only a very small proportion” of urea made at the plant is used to make AdBlue solution.

“We are fully committed to supplying our domestic customers’ requirements and are currently investigating ways we can increase manufacturing capacity of the urea used to make AdBlue solution over the next few months,” the company said.

IPL said it is working closely with its customers, and also with the Federal Government and the broader industry, including the AdBlue Taskforce, which was established by the government on Dec. 9. The Taskforce will work across government and with industry to develop solutions to any potential future supply constraints.

Ammonia

Ammonia, Black Sea, Brazil, Eastern Cornbelt, India, Market Watch, Middle East, Northwestern Europe, South Central, Southeast Asia, Southern Plains, Tampa, U.S. Gulf, Western Cornbelt

U.S. Gulf/Tampa:

Tampa anhydrous ammonia for December continued at $990/mt CFR.

While Yara’s bringing back European ammonia production may improve the supply situation, it may not be soon enough to thwart near-term price increases in the Tampa or international market. Nutrien has sold a Trinidad cargo for early January that would equate to $1,100 mt CFR if it were to go to Tampa.

Eastern Cornbelt:

Sources continued to report some fall movement of ammonia in the region, although the pace was rapidly slowing down. The prompt ammonia market was quoted at $1,350-$1,375/st FOB regional terminals, with the low reported in Illinois and the high FOB Lima, Ohio.

A number of spring prepay ammonia offers were also circulating during the week. CF reportedly came out at $1,375/st FOB in Illinois and Indiana, with Koch at that same level FOB Henry, Ill. Nutrien was also offering spring prepay at $1,375/st FOB Lima, but sources said they expected the next round of offers to be out shortly at higher levels.

Western Cornbelt:

Ammonia applications continued at a brisk pace in Missouri during the week, although an incoming weather system was expected to put a lid on the fall season. Some sources speculated that the heavy fall ammonia volumes have cut into expected spring demand by as much as 50 percent.

Prompt ammonia offers were quoted in the $1,350-$1,450/st FOB range at midweek, with the high reported at Wever, Iowa.

Koch was out with a spring prepay ammonia program on Dec. 7 at $1,355-$1,365/st FOB in Nebraska and $1,370-$1,385/st in Iowa and Minnesota, before boosting those offers by another $10/st on Dec. 8. The company’s second round of prepay pricing included $1,365/st FOB Beatrice, Neb.; $1,375/st FOB Greenwood, Neb.; $1,380/st FOB Sergeant Bluff, Iowa; $1,385/st FOB Iowa terminals at Garner, Fort Dodge, and Washington; $1,390/st FOB Murdock and Vernon Center, N.D.; and $1,395/st FOB Marshalltown, Iowa.

Southern Plains:

Sources said fall fertilizer application was winding down in the Southern Plains, although a fair amount of ammonia was still moving to the field in central Texas. “Harvest is done, and cotton stalks are shredded and sprayed,” said one Texas contact at midweek. “Growers are placing seed orders for cotton, wheat, and corn, still many with a wait-and-see approach.”

Ammonia was quoted at a firm $1,300/st FOB Coffeyville, Kan., for the last prompt price, with no prompt or prepay offers reportedly on the table at Verdigris, Okla., or Pryor, Okla. Prompt truck tons at Beaumont, Texas, were pegged at the $1,050/st FOB level.

South Central:

The ammonia market had reportedly firmed to $950-$1,050/st FOB Gulf Coast terminals for truck offers, depending on location, with the high reported at Beaumont, Texas. There were reports as well of limited truckloads moving out of Midway, Tenn., at the $950/st FOB level in early December.

Black Sea:

There are reports that agreements have been reached that will once again allow some ammonia to be pumped to the port of Yuzhnyy. This could mean some extra tons may begin to appear in January. In the meantime, sources said only limited contract tons are moving out.

A sale out of Turkey was reported at $990/mt FOB. Sources said the deal was not confirmed, but would lead to an equivalent price in Yuzhnyy of $980/mt FOB. This level, said traders, fits in with the current pricing out of the Baltic and with market expectations.

Northwest Europe:

A reported sale of 10,000 mt from Trinidad to Europe was pegged at $1,060/mt FOB. That would lead to a European price of $1,110-$1,120/mt C&F. This price also fits with a reported Baltic price of $1,015/mt FOB earlier in the week.

Sources said even with the European plants running, the price of ammonia is expected to remain high. The tightness of the market, combined with the continued high natural gas price, gives no room for a price decline in the region.

Middle East:

Sources reported that all the plants in the Arab Gulf are now running. Even with the facilities operating, sources said no spot material is expected to be seen until late January 2022.

For now, operations are working to make sure all existing contracts are covered before offering tons on the spot market. The price remains around $900/mt FOB.

India:

The lack of any spot business keeps the posted Indian price well below what most consider market levels. The contract price reportedly is around $670/mt CFR at a time when major suppliers are at $900/mt FOB and up.

Sources said buyers are solely taking contract tons and avoiding any high-priced spot material. Traders said this puts India outside the realm of the rest of the ammonia market. One trader noted, however, that some spot deals may have to start taking place soon.

India has been buying a lot of phos acid for DAP production, traders said, but the ammonia intake has been lower than normal based on the acid purchases. Soon, perhaps in January, sources expect to see some spot buying interest from India.

One trader said January would also be when some spot material might become available from the Arab Gulf as producers catch up with their contract requirements and supplies begin to edge toward a surplus.

Southeast Asia:

There is steady business in the area, but all of it under existing contracts. No new spot deals were reported.Sources said the increased production out of the Arab Gulf may soon be met by stepped up output from the PAU facility in Indonesia. The joint-venture operation is said to be once again operating and should be at full production in January.

Brazil:

Imports of ammonia for January-November were reported at 504,000 mt, up 40 percent from the 361,000 mt imported during the same period last year, according to Trade Data Monitor. The main supplier to Brazil remained Trinidad with 484,000 mt.

November 2021 imports were reported at 27,000 mt, up from the 23,000 mt in November 2021. All the tonnage came from Trinidad.

Urea

Black Sea, Brazil, China, Eastern Cornbelt, India, Indonesia, Market Watch, Middle East, Pakistan, South Central, South Korea, Southeast, Southern Plains, U.S. Gulf, Urea, Western Cornbelt

U.S. Gulf:

New granular urea trades were reported in the $763-$780/st FOB NOLA range, rebounding from the week-ago $752-$787/st FOB. The lower prices last week were attributed to limited buying. More interest was shown this week.

There were unconfirmed reports that some suppliers might be looking at exporting product out of NOLA, but more details were not immediately available.

New prill barge pricing was reported in the $765-$775/st FOB range, with the product losing its premium over granular.

Eastern Cornbelt:

Urea pricing had reportedly slipped in the wake of a slumping NOLA barge market at the start of December. Even though NOLA urea has since rebounded, sources reported new terminal offers at $810-$825/st FOB Cincinnati, Ohio, and $825-$840/st FOB Illinois River terminals, down from $855-$865/st FOB. There were reports as well of spring urea offers on the table at the $840/st FOB level out of spot Ohio River locations at midweek.

Western Cornbelt:

Urea pricing ranged widely in the Western Cornbelt, thanks to a volatile NOLA barge market since the start of December.

While Iowa sources reported terminal pricing at the $860/st FOB level as the week progressed, the low end of the regional range was reported at $810/st FOB Caruthersville, Mo. The St. Louis, Mo., market was quoted at $810-$820/st FOB at midweek.

Southern Plains:

Urea pricing at Catoosa/Inola, Okla., ranged from $815-$840/st FOB during the week. The market FOB Houston, Texas, reportedly firmed from a low of $810/st up to $855/st FOB as the week progressed.

South Central:

The previous week’s slump in NOLA urea pricing, however brief, was reportedly being felt at upriver terminals in the South Central region.

Urea pricing was reported at $810-$815/st FOB Memphis, Tenn., and most Arkansas River terminals, down from $845-$865/st FOB in late November. The upper end of the regional market was pegged at $820-$825/st FOB Shreveport and Convent, La., and spot river terminals in Kentucky.

Southeast:

While prompt urea pricing remained at the $860/st level FOB Savannah, Ga., sources said the Wilmington, N.C., market had slipped to $820-$825/st FOB for Q1 offers. The last rail-delivered business was reported at the $920/st level in the Carolinas.

India:

Sources all repeated the same line: “A tender will be called soon. Maybe as early as Friday.”

Reportedly, leaders from NFL met with fertilizer ministry officials Thursday to discuss the pending tender. Sources are unified in their views that the tender will be called soon because India needs the urea.

Sources vary in their estimates of how much urea India still needs. The lowest number indicates a deficit of 2 million mt, while others point out that India is 2.9 million mt behind its buying from 2020 at this time.

Expectations are that once the tender is called, offers will be well above $1,000/mt CFR. Sources cite several reasons for a tight market with higher prices, including continued restrictions on urea exports from China, with the exception of 18,000 mt to South Korea; the limitations on Russian exports; and the lack of Indonesia tons until late in the first quarter of 2022. Only strong production in the Arab Gulf is expected to offer any hope to prevent runaway prices.

The rising cost of urea is hitting the Indian treasury hard. Besides having to pay dramatically more for the product, the budget to cover the subsidies offered to urea and other fertilizers is also a problem. According to media reports in India, government and financial consulting firms claim that subsidies for the 2021/22 fiscal year will exceed the budgeted amount by 62 percent. The new estimated cost for all subsidies is reported to hit US$17.2 billion.

Industry sources in India said the rising cost of urea is the single largest contributor to the explosion in subsidy payments. Not only is the imported urea now at record levels, but natural gas prices have risen by at least 50 percent this year, causing domestic producers to demand more support from the government.

The Indian government inaugurated the revamped Gorakhpur plant. The facility was adapted to take natural gas instead of coal, and urea production operations were upgraded. According to media reports, a steady supply of natural gas will begin flowing to the plant in early 2022. For now, the plant, which is rated at 1.2 million mt/y, will conduct test runs to work out the kinks.

Middle East:

Production in the Arab Gulf is being used to cover existing commitments, including the most recent IPL urea tender from India. Sources said there is no spot material available through the end of the month. Prices remained steady in the $950s/mt FOB, which was based on the IPL tender results.

The paper market for the Arab Gulf remains behind the actual market. Sources said the December price was pegged at $905/mt FOB and January at $835/mt FOB.

The Egyptian government increased the amount of urea reserved for the domestic market from 55 percent of production to 65 percent. Reportedly this increase was only for the month of December.

No new spot deals came out of Egypt this week, leaving the price at $935-$945/mt FOB. Producers are claiming, without objection, that they are sold out for December. The increase in the domestic quota underscored the lack of Egyptian tons for export.

Egyptian producers are still asking $950/mt FOB for January 2022 tons, but with no takers.

Black Sea:

The urea flowing out of the Black Sea is either booked for the Indian IPL tender or under existing contracts. Sources said there is a lack of spot material in the region. Prices remain steady.

China:

Sources said the export restrictions in China are having an impact on the domestic market. Prices reportedly have come off dramatically. One trader noted that discussions of the price for possible urea exports are below the current $960s/mt FOB. However, no deals with traders have been concluded for export.

The only exports approved so far appear to have been the small lots totaling 18,000 mt for South Korea. Those lots were reportedly already at the bonded warehouses just waiting for final document clearances before being shipped when the export ban deadline hit. Talks among the traders involved and the governments of South Korea and China shook the material loose.

South Korea:

The South Korean government signed a government-to-government three-year deal with Indonesia for 120,000 mt of urea each year. The move came as South Korea looked to diversify its supply of urea following the export restrictions imposed on urea by the Chinese government.

Green Markets previously reported that South Korea imported 751,000 mt of urea during January-October this year. Chinese imports were pegged at 607,000 mt, representing 81 percent of the South Korean market, according to Trade Data Monitor.

Yonhap News Service quoted South Korean government sources as saying the country needed a more reliable source of urea for its emissions control program. The urea is used to make a fluid for diesel vehicles to reduce pollution.

The first batch of 10,000 mt under the agreement will be sent as early as next week. This shipment comes on the heels of an agreement with China that released 18,000 mt for export to South Korea earlier this month.

Pakistan:

Local media reported an announcement by the Pakistan government that it is seeking 100,000 mt from China under a government-to-government deal. Reportedly the Chinese ambassador in Pakistan said he would assign an embassy official to work on the Pakistan government’s request.

International traders said Pakistan might have better luck seeking a government-to-government deal with Saudi Arabia. Such deals have been done in the past when the Pakistan foreign reserves were so low it was difficult for it to import the urea it needed.

The need for government-level talks came when TCP tried twice to float a tender for 100,000 mt. In each case, TCP did not receive any viable offers.

Indonesia:

Sources said the government has not yet issued any export permits for the urea producers. Reportedly the government continues to remain concerned that the domestic urea demand gets covered before any large scale exports are allowed.

The deal the government cut with South Korea for a three-year contract of 120,000 mt/y is reportedly outside the usual export protocols established for the selling tenders held by the producers.

Brazil:

Buyers are getting more forceful in their pushback against higher prices. Sources said Brazilian farmers and blenders have enough urea reserves on hand to hold off making any major buying commitments for a while, unlike in India.

At the same time the buyers are bidding lower prices, some of the end users are apparently heeding the advice of farmer associations to seek diversity in fertilizer inputs to protect the health of the soil. As a result, some buyers are looking to other inputs instead of urea.

Prices at the ports have dropped marginally to $830-$890/mt CFR. This movement is seen as a reaction to the uncertainty that exists in the market. Even as buyers are pushing for lower prices, they are also keeping a wary eye on India. When the next Indian tender is called, sources fear prices may rebound.

Rondonopolis has also shown some softening as buyers pull back. Sources now put the inland price at $960-$1,000/mt FOB ex-warehouse.

January-November urea imports were reported at 7.1 million mt, up 11.5 percent from the 6.4 million purchased during the same period in 2020. The main suppliers this year with sales greater than 1 million mt were Qatar, Russia, Oman, and Algeria, according to Trade Data Monitor. Nigeria sent 727,000 mt to Brazil during the January-November period, up dramatically from the 365,000 mt sent during the same period last year.

November imports were reported at 853,000 mt, down about 4 percent from the 887,000 mt imported in November 2020.

UAN

Eastern Cornbelt, Market Watch, South Central, Southeast, Southern Plains, U.S. Gulf, UAN, Western Cornbelt

U.S. Gulf:

NOLA barges continued to be called $545-$550/st ($17.03-$17.19/unit) FOB, although some players thought the next piece of business may see $560/st ($17.50/unit) FOB.

Eastern Cornbelt:

UAN-32 pricing in the Eastern Cornbelt was quoted at $590-$610/st ($18.44-$19.06/unit) FOB regional terminals for prompt tons, with spring offers reportedly on the table at $625-$630/st ($19.53-$19.69/unit) FOB.

The last UAN-28 business at Cincinnati was reported at the $520/st ($18.57/unit) FOB level for prompt and $550-$555/st ($19.64-$19.82/unit) FOB for Q1.

Western Cornbelt:

The UAN-32 market remained at $590-$620/st ($18.44-$19.38/unit) FOB in the Western Cornbelt for the last prompt tons, with Q1 offers pegged in the $610-$630/st ($19.06-$19.69/unit) range, depending on location.

Southern Plains:

Sources continued to report UAN-32 pricing in a broad range at $560-$600/st ($17.50-$18.75/unit) FOB in the Southern Plains, with the low for prompt tons out of Gulf Coast terminals in Texas and the higher number for March pricing FOB Woodward, Okla. The market FOB Verdigris was pegged at $575/st ($17.97/unit).

South Central:

The UAN-32 market in the South Central region remained at $560-$565/st ($17.50-$17.66/unit) FOB Memphis for prompt tons, with the upper end of the prompt market quoted by Kentucky sources at the $610/st ($19.06/unit) level FOB Ohio River terminals.

Southeast:

UAN-32 prices at terminal locations in the Southeast remained in the $550-$600/st ($17.19-$18.75/unit) FOB range, with the low reported in the Georgia market and the high FOB Wilmington.