Pan American Fertilizer Corp. confirms that, effective May 8, 2014, the TSX Venture Exchange has suspended trading in the Company as a result of a Cease Trade Order (CTO) issued by the British Columbia Securities Commission.

This suspension of trading by the Exchange is a direct result of the company’s delayed filing of its Year End 2014 financials announced in its April 30, 2014 press release.

Reinstatement to trading can only occur when the CTO is revoked and the Exchange has concluded its reinstatement review to ensure that the company has satisfactorily complied with Exchange requirements.

The company anticipates that reinstatement will occur once the Company has completed its 2013 financial filings which are anticipated to be completed before the end of May, 2014.

Pan American is a Canadian company dedicated to providing fertilizer to growing global markets specifically in South and Central America. The company is focused on the extraction of a specific type of fertilizer called calcium sulphate, also referred to as agricultural gypsum, in Argentina.

Ravensdown’s exit of the Australian fertilizer market is complete after a May 15 announcement that its operation in Queensland will cease trading. The move comes five months after the completion of the sale of Ravensdown’s operations in Western Australia and South Australia and within a financial year that has seen the farmer-owned co-operative meeting its turnaround expectations in New Zealand.

“We told shareholders at the last AGM that it was a make or break year for the Queensland business and the hard reality is that it’s the latter,” said Greg Campbell, Ravensdown CEO. “So we need to take action now and put the Australian experience behind us.”

“When the next financial year starts from June 1 2014, there will be no Australian fertilizer trading losses affecting our New Zealand result.”

Ravensdown Fertiliser Australia was set up in 2009 after cane growers invited the co-operative to start supplying soil nutrients. The original business plan based its viability on a 100,000 mt a year target. But cyclones, flooding and depressed world prices for sugar meant fertilizer tonnages reached only 70,000 mt last year.

“Here in New Zealand, we’re investing in advanced nutrient management training, in infrastructure such as new loaders in stores and in technology such as Smart Maps which provides a visual audit trail for a farm’s nutrient status. We’re seeing strong demand from a buoyant New Zealand sector and have good availability of products like superphosphate, DAP and urea in our stores.”

Israel Chemicals Ltd. reported a sharp drop in net profits and a slight drop in revenues for the first quarter of 2014. Net profits were down by 57 percent to $131 million versus $305 million in the corresponding quarter in 2013. Revenues fell by 1 percent to $1.613 billion from $1.64 billion in the first quarter of last year.

ICL said that it reported record sales of potash and phosphates during the first quarter on a volume basis but this was offset by lower prices. In addition, there was continued growth in specialty fertilizer sales. ICL Fertilizers reported revenues of $933 million in the first quarter of 2014 versus $1 billion last year. The company said the drop in revenues was a result of a decline in product prices.

Operating revenue for ICL Fertilizers fell by 38.6 percent for the quarter to $180 million from $293 million last year. The company attributed the decline to lower potash prices, increase in the cost of sales and an increase in operating expenses. ICL cited that this was partially offset by a drop in energy prices due to the greater use of natural gas at several of its Israeli facilities. Operating margins at ICL Fertilizers fell to 19.3 percent from 29 percent in the first quarter of 2013. In addition, ICL said that the labor dispute at Rotem Amfert which included a three week strike had a $7 million impact on ICL Fertilizer’s first quarter operating profit and would have an additional $11 million impact in 2014.

ICL sold a record 1.47 million mt of potash in the first quarter compared to 1.31 million mt in the corresponding quarter last year. This was attributed to higher volume sales to China, Brazil and Europe. The company said that despite the strike at Rotem Amfert it sold a record 525,000 mt of phosphate fertilizers in the first quarter. Revenues were $465 million versus $460 million. The increased quantities sold were offset by reduced prices.

ICL noted that in January and February it signed contracts for the sale of potash in the first half of 2014 in China at a price of $305/mt, representing a $95 reduction compared to agreements signed in 2013. Referring to the Indian market ICL said that it agreed to supply approximately 700,000 mt including options for additional quantities at prices similar to those of other supplies to the Indian market. The company noted that these prices were approximately $105 per ton lower than 2013 levels. ICL also noted increased potash sales to the Brazilian market where demand remains strong.

Excellence Nessuah analyst Gilad Alper noted that ICL’s operating margins on its potash business in the first quarter were 32.7 percent. “The last time the margins were so low was in the second quarter of 2007 and the price of potash at the time was $203 a ton.” He added that this underscores the rise in the cost of production for ICL due to regulation, royalties, labor costs and the strong shekel.

He noted that phosphate business was better than expected due to higher volumes and had an operating margin of around 9 percent. Alper said volumes for potash and phosphates remain strong. He believes that potash prices have reached their bottom and have increased slightly in recent months. But the chemical industry analyst stressed that for ICL to return to much higher profitability potash prices will have to rise significantly over current levels.

The global private equity investment firm Paine & Partners LLC announced on May 12 that it has made a strategic investment in QC Corporation, a producer and supplier of granular and dry micronutrients and ferrous sulfate products headquartered in Baltimore, Md. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Founded by Don Gordon in 1971, QC began as a producer and supplier of ferrous sulfate, and today is one of the largest processors of moist and dried ferrous sulfate products in North America, as well as the only domestic producer of all forms of technical and agricultural grade ferrous sulfate. QC has two independent ferrous sulfate operations – one in Cape Girardeau, Mo., and another in North Lima, Ohio – and the company also operates bulk blending compaction granulation facilities for micronutrient production at the Missouri location.

Following a major expansion in 2013, QC now offers custom manufacturing and toll processing of granulated materials in addition to its own line of granular fertilizer micronutrients. The company reports that its micronutrient products offer 100 percent water solubility in homogeneous, low dust, custom formulations, and include various combinations of sulfates, chelates, sucrates, oxysulfates, and oxides, along with the capability to incorporate and granulate humates and other biostimulants with various NPK fertilizer ingredients. QC’s products are used in lawn and garden, golf course, turf and ornamental, professional horticulture, crop production, and agricultural applications.

“Our investment in QC provides a platform for the company to enhance its already exceptional products and accelerate its growth trajectory,” said Angelos Dassios of Paine & Partners. “We see tremendous potential in QC’s granular micronutrients business and believe QC can leverage cross-portfolio synergies from our agribusiness companies, specifically Verdesian Life Sciences LLC, which focuses on plant health and specialty nutrition. We look forward to working with QC to capitalize on new market opportunities and realize QC’s significant potential."

The Gordon family will continue to lead the day-to-day operations of QC, with Don Gordon serving as chairman of the company. Jason Gordon, Don’s son, has been appointed CEO, and has been with the company for almost 20 years, previously serving as president, chief operating officer, chief financial officer, and vice president of sales and marketing.

“The investment from Paine & Partners will facilitate our continued growth and help us reach our goals across the business, particularly in granular micronutrients,” said Jason Gordon. “Paine & Partners has a strong background in agribusiness and plant nutrition, and we look forward to taking the business to the next level with them. I look forward to leading the company and maintaining our tradition of offering best-in-class products and outstanding customer service, which have been the cornerstones of QC’s success. As a company, we remain committed to our philosophy of strategic partnerships, while helping our suppliers and customers achieve continued success through innovation that we can provide.”

Paine & Partners is headquartered in New York, and makes investments through its $1.2 billion Paine & Partners Capital Fund III L. P. and related entities. QC and Paine & Partners worked with SDA Ventures LLC, a Maryland-based strategic consulting firm, to complete the transaction.

Boise—The J. R. Simplot Co. has announced plans to build a new fertilizer storage warehouse and blending operation in East Grand Forks, Minn. “This project aligns with our strategy to be a fully integrated agricultural input business,” said Simplot AgriBusiness Group president Garrett Lofto. “From phosphate mining to fertilizer manufacturing to retail distribution, we are committed to meeting the needs of our customers at all levels.”

Construction of the new facility is scheduled to begin early this summer on the site of the Simplot Grower Solutions unit in East Grand Forks. The project should be completed during the spring of 2015.

“This new state-of-the-art facility will allow Simplot to introduce new products and provide an enhanced level of service to our customers in the Red River Valley” said Dave Dufault, head of Simplot Grower Solutions retail stores. “The project also ties directly to our long-term strategy to establish highly efficient distribution systems in key markets. The Red River Valley is an important, strategic area for us to grow our retail presence due to its rich and diverse agricultural marketplace.”

Rentech Nitrogen Partners LP reported first-quarter net income of net income of $3.1 million ($0.08 per diluted unit) compared to the year-ago $15.0 million ($0.38 per unit).

Revenues were $56.3 million, compared to the year-ago $59.6 million for the same period in the prior year. Revenues declined 18 percent from the prior-year quarter at the East Dubuque, Illinois facility; they increased 11 percent over the prior-year quarter at the Pasadena, Texas facility.

“First quarter financial and operating performance improved significantly from the fourth quarter. Results for the first quarter benefitted from the work we completed to expand and repair the facilities. The East Dubuque and Pasadena facilities are producing at or above new nameplate production capacities,” said D. Hunt Ramsbottom, Rentech CEO. “Springtime nitrogen application in our trade zone is off to a strong start. Second quarter results will likely show a sequential improvement, thanks to the anticipated improved spring season.”

East Dubuque net income was $11.2 million down from the year-ago $17.3 million. Revenues were $28.5 million, down from $34.5 million. The decrease was primarily the result of lower ammonia and UAN deliveries, and lower sales prices for all fertilizer products.

Pasadena recorded a first-quarter net loss of $0.8 million, compared to year-ago net income of $1.8 million. Revenues were up at $27.8 million from $25 million. The increase was primarily the result of higher ammonium sulfate (AS) sales volumes, which were almost completely offset by a decrease in ammonium sulfate sales prices. Both domestic and international sales increased as a result of higher ammonium sulfate production following the completion of the AS debottlenecking project in December 2013. Production of ammonium sulfate increased by approximately 14 percent during the first quarter as compared to the same period last year. Ammonium sulfate comprised approximately 77 percent of revenues from the Pasadena facility for the first quarter of 2014 and 69 percent for the same period last year.

Average AS sales prices per ton dropped by 40 percent for the three months ended March 31, 2014 as compared with the same period last year, largely due to the global decline in nitrogen pricing. Additional supply of AS produced by new caprolactam plants coming online in China also affected ammonium sulfate prices. AS is a byproduct of caprolactam production. Average sales price for ammonium sulfate also decreased this quarter due to a higher proportion of AS export sales as compared to the same period last year. Export sales are typically priced lower than domestic sales.