Incitec Pivot Fertilizer (IPF), the fertilizer business of Melbourne-based Incitec Pivot Ltd. (IPL) and the largest supplier of fertilizer on Australia’s East Coast, announced on Aug. 28 that it has opened a newly upgraded fertilizer import and distribution facility at Portland in regional Victoria, following a $20 million investment in the site.
IPF said the upgrades will improve operational efficiency and storage capacity, with the site now capable of distributing 200,000 mt/y of fertilizer products to growers. The upgrades also enable the application of coatings to produce enhanced efficiency fertilizers such as Green Urea NV® and eNpower®, IPF said.
“The upgraded facility can now blend up to 300 tonnes of fertilizer per hour, increasing output and ensuring customers across Victoria and South Australia receive product promptly,” said IPF President Scott Bowman, who attended the facility opening along with growers, IPF customers, and industry stakeholders.
“It will not only enhance supply to the local and domestic market, but ensure customers have access to customized formulations that provide exact nutrients needed for maximum yield and more environmentally sustainable outcomes,” he added. “IPF’s investment in the Portland facility is part of our strategy to deliver productivity benefits for growers through innovation and provision of high-quality products. It also demonstrates IPF’s dedication to rural and regional Australia.”
The Portland site was first commissioned as a fertilizer manufacturing plant in November 1968 by Victoria-based Cresco Fertilisers, which sold the facility to IPF in 1972.