All posts by mickeybarb@charter.net

Uralchem – Management Brief

Management Briefs, Russia

Uralchem, Moscow, announced that Uralchem Holding plc’s General Director [CEO] Alexander Prygunkov has resigned from the position effective April 26 at his own request. Prygunkov, who only took up the position on Dec. 4, was to focus on the company’s digital transformation processes “to increase loyalty and long-term cooperation with clients” (GM Dec. 11, 2020).

Shortly before Prygunkov’sappointment, there were Russian media rumors that Uralchem’s and Uralkali’s CEOs were about to be replaced amid speculation of merger plans for the two companies in 2021. The merger plans were refuted by Uralchem owner and Chairman and now Uralkali majority shareholder Dmitry Mazepin (GM Nov. 20, 2020).

Uralkali subsequently announced Vitaly Lauk, the company’s Technical Director, as its new CEO, effective Dec. 4. Lauk replaced Dmitry Osipov, who had held the position since December 2013. It was planned that Osipov would focus on new projects at Uralkali, but he has since left the company and is now CEO of Russia’s Vsmpo-Avisma Corp.

Saudi Arabian Mining Co. – Management Brief

Management Briefs, Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabian Mining Co. (Ma’aden), Riyadh, CEO Mosaed bin Suliman Al Ohali has resigned from the position, effective April 25, for personal reasons, the Saudi company announced in a stock exchange filing. Al Ohali has been Ma’aden’s CEO for just over 12 months, and replaced Darren Davis, who had held the role since July 2018.

Abdulaziz bin Asker Al Harbi has been appointed Ma’aden’s acting CEO until further notice. Al Harbi has more than 33 years of experience in industrial management and operation, and has been a board member and chairman in several companies. He joined Ma’aden in 2007 as President of Ma’aden Phosphate Co., and has held several other executive positions at the company, most recently being appointed as an Executive Vice President, Shared Services & Security.

Before joining Ma’aden, from 1987Al Harbiworked for Saudi Basic Industries Corp. (SABIC), where his last position was Director General, Operation, Technical, and Expansion at Saudi Arabian Fertilizer Co. (now known as SABIC Agri-Nutrients Co.),  an affiliate of SABIC.

Al Ohali has also resigned as a Ma’aden executive board member.

FBSciences Adds Three New Products

News, News Briefs, Specialty

FBSciences, Memphis, which specializes in biostimulant and biopesticide products, on April 14 announced three new products to complete its six-product calcium nitrate (CN) Compatible lineup. The products are specifically formulated to be compatible with YaraLiva® calcium nitrate fertilizers.

The new products include CopCAN™ Soil CN Compatible, PhotoCAN™ Soil CN Compatible, and FlexCAN™ Soil CN Compatible. Existing products include ZiCAN™, BorCAN™, and ManCAN™ Soil.

The company said ZiCAN, the first product launched under this collaboration, resulted in the most successful product launch in FBSciences’ history.

FBSciences said the expanding product line mixes perfectly with YaraLiva CAN-17 and CN-9, resulting in fewer trips across the field, increased flexibility, and reduced application costs to growers. The company said its products promote the uptake and translocation of the nutrients in these formulations, but also improve the efficiency of other nutrients in the tank. It noted a recent corn study in which ZiCAN Soil and YaraLivaCAN-17 together picked up a 50.9 percent total plant weight increase compared to using YaraLiva CAN-17 alone.

Ostara Partners with Ireland’s Largest Wastewater Treatment Plant

News, News Briefs, Specialty

Ostara Nutrient Recovery Technologies Inc., Vancouver, B.C., and Murphy Ireland Ltd., Dublin, Ireland, on April 28 announced the signing of definitive agreements to supply key Ostara nutrient recovery technologies as part of the larger facilities upgrade project being undertaken by Irish Water at the Ringsend Wastewater Treatment Plant in Dublin, Ireland.

Ringsend is the national utility’s largest wastewater treatment plant, treating over 40 percent of the country’s wastewater, and it is undergoing a major upgrade to support future population growth and comply with the European Union Urban Wastewater Treatment Directive to protect nearby waterbodies.

Built in 2005, the current wastewater treatment plant is the largest in Ireland and was designed to cater for an equivalent of 1.64 million people. It is currently overloaded and is not in compliance with the E.U. Directive. The average daily load received in 2019 was 1.98 million population equivalent, with peaks well in excess of this. Upon completion of the upgrade scheduled for 2025, Ringsend is projected to have the treatment capacity of 2.4 million.

Ostara’s nutrient recovery technology and Murphy’s infrastructure construction and delivery have been selected, following a public procurement process, to help Irish Water meet these regulatory directives and mitigate nutrient issues at Ringsend.

Ostara will provide its Ostara Pearl® 10K reactor and “Wasstrip®” technology to recover phosphorus and nitrogen from wastewater streams to produce the company’s Crystal Green ® fertilizer products, which are sold globally into the turf, ornamental, and agriculture markets. Ostara estimates the project will provide it with the technology to produce 14 mt/d of Crystal Green, which will be distributed in Europe and North America.

Construction of the Ostara component is scheduled for completion in 2022. The nutrient recovery system is to be operational in 2023.

Central Garden Partners to Grow E-Commerce

California, News, News Briefs, Specialty

Central Garden & Pet Co., Walnut Creek, Calif., reported that it has partnered with Profitero Inc., Dublin, Ireland, a major e-commerce platform, to further grow Central’s ambition to increase its e-commerce business in the Garden and Pet categories.

Central said the new global partnership will enable the company to have a full view of its e-commerce business across eight retail partners. Central will utilize Profitero’s digital shelf analytics and share data to enhance its online strategy from strengthening its digital supply chain and product content to optimizing retail media campaigns.

Central said the Home and Garden e-commerce growth rate is two times faster than the category, and Pet e-commerce has grown five times in the last five years.

“E-commerce continues to experience incredible growth across both the Garden and Pet industries, presenting new and exciting opportunities for Central and our retail partners,” said Mike McGoohan, Central Senior Vice President, Marketing and Strategy. “Our partnership with Profitero will help provide better visibility into our consumers’ shopping experience at the digital shelf, which will ultimately increase basket size, drive attachment rates, and grow our businesses.”

Haldor Topsoe, Shchekinoazot Partner on Green Products

Ammonia, Methanol, News, News Briefs, Russia, Scandinavia

Haldor Topsoe, Lyngby, Denmark, and Russian chemical company Shchekinoazot, Tula Region Russia, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to synchronize vison and plans on developing blue and green methanol, ammonia, and hydrogen production and reducing CO2 emissions.

The parties agreed to inform each other on latest technological developments and jointly explore opportunities of implementing Topsoe’s technologies at Shchekinoazot’s plants to produce high-quality chemicals efficiently and safely with the lowest rates of greenhouse gas emission.

Indian Fertilizer Companies Supply Oxygen

India, News, News Briefs

Major Indian fertilizer companies are quickly moving to reorient their plants to produce oxygen to fight the current COVID-19 situation in the country. An estimated 50 mt/d is expected to be produced, according to the Indian press, which reported initial responders as Indian Farmers Fertiliser Cooperative Ltd. (IFFCO), Gujarat State Fertilizer and Chemicals Ltd. (GSFS), and Gujarat Narmada Valley Fertilisers and Chemicals Ltd. (GNFC).

NGC, Proman Move on Methanol

Caribbean, Methanol, News, News Briefs

The National Gas Co. of Trinidad and Tobago Ltd. (NGC) and Proman Trinidad on April 27 announced the resumption of an interim gas supply arrangement that would facilitate an immediate restart of MHTL’s M4 and M5000 methanol plants. This interim agreement was put in place while the commercial terms of a long-term gas supply contract are being finalized between the two parties.

Grupo Vittia Pulls IPO Plans

Brazil, News, News Briefs, Specialty

Specialty fertilizer company Grupo Vittia, Sao Joaquim da Barra, Sao Paulo, Brazil, said on April 28 that while it has become a publicly-held company, due to current market conditions it has decided not to proceed with an initial public offering (IPO) at this time. The shares were to begin trading April 30.

Vittia had set an IPO price of BRL7.80-BRL9.80, according to Bloomberg, citing filings that reported the IPO was expected to pull in BRL572 million, or US$102.5 million. A primary offering was for 23.5 million shares, with a secondary offering of 41.6 million. Morgan Stanley was the lead coordinator for the offering.

CEO Wilson Romanini said the company will continue with its growth strategy. The company acquired Vitoria Fertilizantes, Patos de Minas, Minas Gerais, last fall (GM Sept. 18, 2020). Other companies in the group include Biosoja, Samaritá, Granorte, Biovalens, and JB Biotechnologia.