CVR Partners LP reported a third-quarter loss of $13.5 million ($0.18 per diluted share) on sales of $49.3 million compared to the year-ago net income of $12.7 million ($0.17 per share) and $66.7 million, respectively. The company cited both a planned turnaround as well as unplanned outages at its air separation unit which resulted in approximately 18 days of additional downtime.

Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan Inc. announced production cuts Oct. 29 as it reported lower third-quarter earnings. Third-quarter net income was $282 million ($0.34 per diluted share) on sales of $1.53 billion, down from the year-ago $317 million ($0.38 per share) and $1.64 billion, respectively.

“Broader emerging market concerns have weighed on customer sentiment, contributing to a weaker fertilizer environment in the second half of 2015," said PotashCorp President and CEO Jochen Tilk. "In response, we are moving forward the permanent closure date of our Penobsquis, New Brunswick mine and planning inventory shutdowns in December at three of our Saskatchewan mines (Allan, Cory and Lanigan). While we anticipate production in the fourth quarter to be reduced by nearly 500,000 mt, we do not expect employee layoffs."

"Despite challenges over recent months, we are seeing signs of a shift in focus by distributors and farmers to 2016," Tilk said. "We believe the need for increased global agricultural production – coupled with supportive crop prices – provides a compelling opportunity for farmers."

PotashCorp has revised full-year expectations for the potash business, lowering sales volume guidance to a range of 9.0-9.2 million mt and it now expects potash gross margin of $1.4-$1.5 billion, reflecting weaker volumes and pricing.

The company has lowered the top end of the previous combined nitrogen and phosphate gross margin guidance range and now estimates it will generate between $1.0-$1.1 billion. In nitrogen, it expects total gross margin below last year’s record as increased global supply is expected to keep prices for most products below 2014 levels. Additionally, weaker North American demand, reduced production due to mechanical challenges and an expansion-related turnaround at Lima are expected to keep sales volumes below last year’s levels. In phosphate, supportive market fundamentals and our higher-netback product mix are expected to support gross margin above 2014 levels.

PotashCorp has lowered the range for income from offshore equity investments to $165-$175 million due to a weaker-than-expected potash earnings environment and it has also slightly increased the estimate for selling and administrative expenses to a range of $245-$250 million.

Due to the continued strength of the US dollar, it has revised the full-year foreign exchange rate assumption to C$1.26 per US dollar.

As a result of the noted changes, it has revised full-year 2015 earnings guidance to $1.55-$1.65 per share.

The Tampa anhydrous ammonia prices were down $15/mt for November, settling at $420/mt CFR from October’s $435/mt in trades by major players.

The State Trading Company (STC) of India called a urea tender over the weekend. The tender closes Oct. 30, with validity through Nov. 5 and shipping by Dec. 15. Industry sources expected a tender to be called before the end of October after the earlier MMTC tender failed to secure as many tons as hoped for.

The buying house will face higher Chinese prices than what were offered in the previous tender. The prime motivation for higher prices is the beginning of the Chinese winter fill program. Producers will be able to play exporters and domestic buyers against each other. The product competition also comes as the producers’ association is strongly advising its members against accepting any offers below $250/mt FOB.

Sources estimate that India needed 1.5-2 million tons to close off the calendar year. Initial hopes that the MMTC tender would get to within closing distance of that amount fizzled after the buying house only picked up about 620,000 mt.

The Mosaic Co. confirmed that a skip – a device that transports potash to the surface – experienced a mechanical failure at the Esterhazy K1 potash mine in Esterhazy, Sask., early on the morning of Oct. 26. The company said no significant injuries occurred, but mining operations at the facility have stopped while Mosaic conducts an investigation.

Mosaic said the extent of damage and length of shutdown have yet to be determined, but the company expects potash sales in fourth-quarter 2015 to be unaffected by the incident.

The Mosaic Co. has confirmed that it has issued layoff notices to some 46 hourly, unionized employees at its Colonsay potash mine in Saskatchewan. Mosaic said the notices were issued as per its collective bargaining agreement, and the employees have been given eight weeks’ notice. Some 506 workers are employed at Colonsay.

Mosaic said the development is in response to current market conditions. Back in September, Mosaic announced that it would be reducing production in its Potash business by extending maintenance downtime at Colonsay, and also maintain slower production in its Phosphate business. At the time, the company cited delayed fertilizer purchases in Brazil and North America.

"This is a very difficult choice for any company to make and Mosaic is no exception," a Mosaic spokesperson told Green Markets. "We are committed to the long term sustainability of our business and will continue to operate as a responsible partner in the community."

Yara International ASA delivered strong third-quarter results, with EBITDA excluding special items up 15 percent compared with a year earlier, mainly driven by a stronger US dollar and higher sales volumes as a result of the OFD and Galvani acquisitions.

"I am pleased to see continued growth in our premium product deliveries during the quarter, with the strongest growth in overseas markets," said Svein Tore Holsether, Yara president and CEO.

Yara reports third-quarter net income after non-controlling interests of NOK 4,004 million (NOK 14.56 per share), compared with NOK 1,707 million (NOK 6.18 per share) a year earlier. Excluding net foreign exchange loss and special items, the result was NOK 7.41 per share compared with NOK 7.62 per share third quarter 2014. Third-quarter EBITDA excluding special items was NOK 4,614 million compared with NOK 4,002 million a year earlier.

Global Yara fertilizer deliveries were up 1 percent from third quarter 2014, mainly due to the acquisitions of OFD in Latin America and Galvani in Brazil. Excluding OFD and Galvani, deliveries were down 8 percent, with lower deliveries of third-party and joint venture sourced products, while sales of Yara-produced products were in line with last year.

In Europe, fertilizer deliveries were 5 percent lower than last year. While nitrate sales increased compared to a year ago, both compound NPK and urea sales decreased by more than 10 percent compared to last year. In Brazil, underlying deliveries declined 6 percent, with a 10 percent decrease in blended NPK deliveries while sales of premium products increased 9 percent. Industrial sales volumes increased 5 percent compared to third quarter 2014.

Yara’s margins declined compared to third quarter last year as realized prices fell more than feed stock costs. Realized urea prices decreased 15 percent, realized nitrate prices were down 17 percent and compound NPK prices decreased on average 12 percent com¬pared with third quarter 2014, while Yara’s average global gas costs were 13 percent lower than a year ago.

Yara said the global farm margin outlook and incentives for fertilizer application remain supportive overall, especially for key crop exporting regions such as Europe and Latin America where local currencies have depreciated relative to the US dollar. The company said the European season has started well, with third-quarter nitrate deliveries and industry stocks at normal levels. Yara sees improved demand in Brazil going forward, due to increased agricultural competitiveness compared with other exporting regions. Based on current forward markets for oil products and natural gas, Yara’s European energy costs for the next two quarters are expected to be NOK 850 million lower than a year earlier.

North Yorks Moors National Park Authority on Oct. 19 issued a decision notice to Sirius Minerals, formally granting planning permission for the company’s mine and mineral transport system application. This notice completes the planning approvals needed to start construction, Sirius said in a statement earlier today. However, campaigners opposed to the mine say the fight is not over and the charity Campaign for National Parks said it now will review the documentation to see if there are grounds for a legal challenge.

Russian potash producer Uralkali announced Oct. 19 that Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) index provider has made a decision to exclude the company’s shares from MSCI Global Standard Indexes Russia, effective from Oct. 21, 2015.

The decision comes after the proportion of Uralkali’s outstanding shares available for purchase by international investors fell below the required threshold after a stock buyback by the company, which was completed Sept. 25.  The potash producer repurchased 22 percent of its shares, including a 12.5 percent stake held by China’s Chengdong Investment Corp. The $2-billion buyback reduced the ‘free float’ to approximately 13.9 percent of Uralkali’s share capital, the potash producer said Oct. 16. This latest stock repurchase follows another buyback of around $1 billion in June.

It is understood that passively-managed funds that track the MSCI indexes are forced to sell Uralkali shares once the company is dropped from the index. Bloomberg Business quoted Russia’s VTB Capital as saying the exclusion from the MSCI index could drive as much as $30-$35 million of investment away from the stock.

Uralkali in August warned the reduction in the free float may also lead to a de-listing of its shares from the London and Moscow stock exchanges.

Both major buyers have now concluded fourth-quarter Tampa sulfur contracts at $110/lt, down $27/lt from the third-quarter’s $137/lt.