Agrifos Fertilizer LLC and Interoceanic Corp. announced March 22 a multi-year agreement for Interoceanic to market up to 400,000 st of ammonium sulfate produced by Agrifos at its Pasadena plant. Agrifos will start supplying ammonium sulfate to the domestic and certain international markets through Interoceanic starting in the second quarter of 2011.

“We are excited to combine our expertise in fertilizer production with the Interoceanic marketing and distribution network in North America and other markets,” said Agrifos CEO Dave Gutacker.

“We welcome this opportunity to extend our relationship with Agrifos,” said Elio Mazzella, Sr., Interoceanic president. “We look forward to a mutually beneficial partnership in introducing Agrifos’ high quality ammonium sulfate to the marketplace.”

Agrifos is a Pasadena, Texas-based producer of sulfuric acid and ammonium thiosulfate. In the second quarter of 2011, Agrifos will start producing granular ammonium sulfate. The Agrifos plant had previously produced phosphate fertilizer products from phosphate rock imported from Morocco, an activity that will be winding up prior to the start up of AS production.

In 2008, Agrifos agreed with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to close its phosphogypsum stack (GM April 7, 2008) over a two-year period. As a result, Agrifos, which has the capacity to produce 400,000 st/y of phosphoric acid, has been expected to wind down production of that product along with super phos acid, DAP, and MAP – in the first or second quarter of 2011.

Interoceanic is a marketing company focusing on North American fertilizer distribution, world trade, and industrial chemicals.

In addition to the Interoceanic deal, Agrifos announced in 2010 (GM July 26, 2010) that it had made a multi-year agreement for the Shrieve Group to market up to 400,000 st/y of sulfuric acid produced by the Pasadena plant, starting in 2011.

The U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC) has voted to conduct full five-year sunset reviews of the antidumping duty orders currently in place on solid urea imports from Russia and Ukraine.

This is the third five-year sunset review for solid urea imports from Russia and Ukraine. The process was initiated on Dec. 1, 2010 (GM Dec. 6, 2010), at which time the USITC announced it was accepting comments from interested parties and would evaluate those submissions to determine whether a full or an expedited review would take place. The order was previously continued on Jan. 5, 2006, following the second sunset review.

As a result of these votes, the USITC will now conduct full reviews to determine whether revocation of these orders would likely lead to the continuation or recurrence of material injury to the domestic urea industry within a reasonably foreseeable time. The full review process includes a public hearing and the issuance of questionnaires to interested parties, or interveners, in the case.

The schedule for the urea review has not yet been formulated and it may not be for awhile, according to Peg O’Laughlin, USITC public affairs officer. O’Laughlin told Green Markets the length of a full review varies a great deal, but generally the USITC must complete it within 360 days. The schedule will be announced in a Federal Register notice when it is determined.

In past reviews, arguments in favor of keeping the antidumping duty orders in place have been submitted by the Ad Hoc Committee of Domestic Nitrogen Producers (Committee), whose urea-producing members include CF Industries Inc. and PCS Nitrogen, a unit of Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan Inc.

Agrium Inc. has also submitted comments as an intervener in past USITC actions involving solid urea imports from Russia and Ukraine.

PotashCorp told Green Markets that it is once again participating in this latest review, but had no other comment at this time. Agrium also said it had no comment on the review, and CF had not responded by press time.

The last sunset review in 2005 was contentious, resulting in an appeal of the USITC’s decision by Russian urea producers Nevinnomysskiy Azot, Novomoskovsk Azot JSC, JSC MCC Eurochem, Kuybyshevazot JSC, JSC “Azot” Berezniki, and JSC “Azot” Kemerovo.

The U.S. Court of International Trade, in response to the appeal, remanded the decision back to the USITC for reconsideration. The battle did not end until December 2007, when the USITC upheld the existing antidumping orders against Russia and Ukraine (GM Dec. 3, 2007).

The Agricultural Retailers Association (ARA) and other buying groups also weighed in during the last sunset review, arguing for an end to the antidumping duties because of changing market dynamics (GM Dec. 3, 2007).

Industry sources note that conditions have changed since 2005 the U.S. industry has continued to consolidate and is currently profitable, enjoying lower natural gas prices and good demand. By contrast, Ukraine now suffers from higher natural gas prices and has become a swing producer.

The U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) first issued antidumping duty orders on imports of solid urea from the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) on July 14, 1987. After the USSR divided in December 1991, DOC split the order into 15 orders applicable to each independent state.

In 1999, the orders were continued only for Russia and Ukraine. Those have remained in place except for an exemption of MCC Eurochem, which in 2008 successfully achieved “new-shipper” status, and thereby avoided the 64.93 percent tariff placed on other Russian and Ukrainian producers (GM May 26, 2008).

The USITC also announced in March that it has initiated the second five-year sunset review of antidumping duties on ammonium nitrate imports from Ru

The Mosaic Co., the CHS Foundation, and Viterra Inc. last week announced contributions to relief efforts in Japan.

Mosaic, Plymouth, Minn., announced a $1 million donation to the Red Cross. Mosaic will also be giving its Japanese customers priority on future shipments of phosphate and potash to replace those damaged by the tsunami and to ensure Japan’s food security is not threatened. In addition to the $1 million contribution, Mosaic employee donations to relief efforts in Japan will be matched dollar-for-dollar by the company up to $100,000.

“We have developed strong long-term relationships with our Japanese customers. I am deeply saddened by the human tragedy that Japan is facing, yet simultaneously inspired by the resilience, courage, and dignity of the Japanese people,” said Jim Prokopanko, Mosaic president and CEO. “Our customers have also seen some of their crop nutrient reserves washed away by the tsunami. To help the recovery, Mosaic is prioritizing shipments to ensure Japan’s farmers have the nutrients they need to grow food for their people. I hope our response will go some way towards alleviating their suffering.” Japan is the sixth largest international market that Mosaic serves, and the company has been working with its customers to understand the country’s needs moving forward.

The CHS Foundation, St. Paul, Minn., will contribute a total of $75,000 to the Cooperative Development Foundation (CDF) and the American Red Cross International Disaster Relief Fund. The foundation will also match up to $37,500 in CHS employee donations to the two designated organizations, for a potential total contribution of $150,000.

“Cooperatives in the United States and Japan have a long history together and we are gratified to be able to help at this very difficult time,” said William Nelson, Foundation president. “We also want to show our support to those in Japan with whom we have long-standing relationships.”

Viterra, Calgary, Alberta, announced a C$75,000 donation to the Red Cross Japanese Earthquake Asia-Pacific Tsunami Response Fund. “We are thankful that all of our Japanese employees have been confirmed safe in the wake of this terrible disaster. Our thoughts continue to go out to our Japanese colleagues, customers and all those affected by the devastating turn of events which have gripped the country,” said Mayo Schmidt, Viterra’s president and CEO. Viterra employs seven people through its marketing office in Tokyo.

BASF SE, Ludwigshafen, Germany, said March 21 that as a first step it will contribute E500,000 to the Central Community Chest of Japan. Additionally, the company will start a global donation campaign among its employees and will fully match each euro contributed by the employees one-to-one. BASF said that all of its some 1,700 employees in Japan are safe. It recommended that employees in strongly affected areas move to less affected regions, and is providing logistical support. The company will continue to provide assistance to employees whose housing was destroyed or damaged by the earthquake or tsunami. Especially for BASF sites in the northeast of Japan, the company is helping to provide basic temporary support such as food, water, batteries, and lodging to those with damaged homes.

Immediately after the earthquake, BASF set up Country and Regional Incident Management Teams to support employees and assess and manage the situation from an operational and business perspective. BASF has 35 operations sites, including 27 production sites and eight research and development and technical centers, as well as 49 sales offices, in Japan.

Yara International ASA has signed a Letter of Intent (LOI) for the construction of a 330,000 mt/y technical ammonium nitrate (TAN) plant at Burrup, Australia.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Co. said March 22 that by the end of 2012 phosphorus will be removed from ScottsMiracle-Gro’s lawn fertilizers, including the market-leading Scotts® Turf Builder® brand. While Scotts said it began reducing phosphorus in its lawn food products in 2006, the new announcement takes that commitment even further, as the company has concluded that most lawns in the U.S. can flourish without supplemental phosphorus applications.

Scotts told Green Markets that it is already possible to find its lawn fertilizers without phosphates. Generally, their phosphate content is already low, somewhere between 0 to 2 percent.

Scotts, however, is not giving up phosphates altogether. Because phosphorus is essential to the initial root development of grass, Scotts says the nutrient will remain in the company’s starter fertilizers, which are used for new lawns. Phosphorus will also remain in Scotts’ lines of organic lawn food, as it naturally occurs in the organic materials contained in the products.

Additionally, Scotts also announced it is increasing its focus on more efficient and optimized ways to use nitrogen in its lawn fertilizer products through enhanced science and technology efforts. This enhanced exploration of nitrogen technology will commence immediately, anticipating that the initiative will lead to more efficient use of nitrogen in lawn fertilizers. Scotts noted that nitrogen is a critical nutrient for maintaining healthy grass.

With approximately $3 billion in worldwide sales, Scotts is the world’s largest marketer of branded consumer products for lawn and garden care.

“We want to provide consumers with the tools they need to create the lawn and garden they want while also being stewards of the environment,” said Jim Hagedorn, Scotts chairman and CEO. “What better time to announce these initiatives than on World Water Day, and also at the start of another lawn and garden season.”

Hagedorn also said a central part of Scotts’ new initiative is a multi-year commitment to new consumer communication, education, and grassroots outreach regarding water quality and conservation. This includes incorporating water quality and conservation messaging into Scotts’ consumer advertising, dedicated Web sites, and other digital outreach tools for consumers, as well as funding for educational outreach efforts with environmental partners and local organizations.

“We have seen the success of consumer education efforts regarding sustainable lawn care practices,” said Hagedorn. “Making sure consumers know how they can get great results from our products while also protecting and preserving water is critical, which is why we’re announcing this new commitment.”

“Protecting water is a cornerstone of our sustainability efforts, but we cannot succeed on our own we know we need to tap into the expertise and capabilities of others,” said Richard Shank, Ph.D., and Scotts chief environmental officer. Shank, a former director of The Nature Conservancy in Ohio, has also served as the director of the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency. “While we are confident in the steps announced today, we know communities across the U.S. continue to struggle with water quality and conservation issues. We remain committed to offering educational resources that will allow community leaders to focus on larger sources of nutrient pollution and ultimately protect our environment.”

As part of this effort, outreach programs will initially be developed in conjunction with the Alliance for the Great Lakes and the National Wildlife Federation, and the company expects to partner with other organizations as the initiative progresses. Also, the company will enhance its current partnership with Keep America Beautiful (KAB) and make educational resources available through more than 600 KAB local affiliates for community education initiatives on stormwater runoff

Agrium Inc., fresh off a major acquisition of AWB Ltd.’s fertilizer and grain assets in December 2010 (GM Dec. 6, 2010), is now in line to take over Australian fertilizer wholesaler HiFert. AWB already owned 50 percent of HiFert.

Elders Ltd., Adelaide, South Australia, said March 17 that Agrium has a call option to purchase its indirect 50 percent stake in HiFert. The option is exercisable by Agrium within 90 days, and has been granted in return for nominal consideration. Completion of the sale under the option is conditioned on regulatory and other approvals being obtained by Dec. 31, 2011.

Elders said its 50 percent indirect interest in HiFert had previously been classified as non-core and outside its strategic focus. The interest, which is held through Elders’ 50 percent shareholding in HiFert’s parent company, ELF Australia Pty Ltd., has been for sale for some time.

Elders said it wants out of ELF and the commitments this involves. The shedding of HiFert couldn’t come too soon for Elders, which said as part of the arrangements it has been released from its fertilizer sourcing obligations from HiFert. This enables Elders to source fertilizer independent of ELF and HiFert.

“The outcome is that Elders now has greater, and more flexible, fertilizer sourcing options,” said Malcolm Jackman, Elders managing director. “With the winter cropping season approaching, we are moving to realize the benefits this confers for our company and our clients. With the seasonal conditions for winter cropping being highly favorable to date, we are ready for the strong anticipated demand for fertilizer. Growers can count on Elders as a reliable and competitive supplier for their needs.”

The Melbourne-based HiFert was founded in 1984, and supplies fertilizer, storage, manufacturing, and distribution facilities through distribution centers in Townsville and Brisbane, Queensland; Port Adelaide, Kadina, and Port Lincoln, South Australia; New Castle, New South Wales; and Geelong and Portland, Victoria.

HiFert supplies more than 600 outlets on the East Coast of Australia. Since the unit has been held for sale, AWB did not report earnings for it in the first half ending March 31, 2010. For the first half of 2009 it had a loss of A$4.7 million (GM Aug. 23, 2010).In addition, Agrium, according to recent reports, has also eyed New Zealand rural services company PGG Wrightson (PGGW), but has opted not to proceed with that acquisition. Agrium would not comment on the PGGW reports.