Koch Fertilizer (KF), Wichita, said on March 10 it is investing approximately $150 million at its Enid, Okla., nitrogen facility to increase urea production and enhance the reliability of existing production units, as well as improve rail infrastructure and ammonia truck loading facilities.
The project will increase production of ammonia upgrade products. Once complete, KF Enid will be able to supply up to 1.8 million st/y of ammonia upgrade products. Construction is anticipated to begin in 2021, with startup occurring in 2022.
“We continue to see growing interest in upgraded products, like urea and enhanced efficiency fertilizers (EEF),” said Scott McGinn, KF Executive Vice President. “By increasing our production capacity and flexibility, we can better serve our customers long-term with the products they prefer.”
The news is not a complete surprise, as the company said in late 2019 that it was in the engineering phase for a possible upgrade at Enid (GM Sept. 6, 2019). At that time, it was thought the increase would be just urea. The company put total ammonia upgrade capacity at 1.5 million st/y, which would indicate the just announced investment would add 300,000 st/y.
As part of the improvements, KF Enid will expand its onsite rail tracks and shipping capability, which will improve efficiencies for the company and its rail freight suppliers.
Additionally, it is upgrading its ammonia truck loading facilities, including relocating them within the facility. The company said the improvements not only will enhance loading reliability and safety, but also improve the customer experience with faster loading times and staging lanes during peak loading periods.
“We strive to create the best customer experience, and our loading system was falling short,” said Mike Kleis, KF Enid Vice President Operations and Plant Manager. “The new loading facility will create an overall better experience for truck drivers and allow them to load faster during peak seasons.”
This investment builds on the $1.3 billion Enid expansion and modernization improvements made from 2014-2017 (GM Oct. 20, 2017). The centerpiece of that expansion was a new 900,000 st/y urea plant. The company also added 90,000 st of urea storage, an electric power substation, and DEF production, and tripled its SuperU production capacity.
The Enid facility was constructed in 1974 and was purchased by Koch in 2003 as part of the Farmland Industries Inc. bankruptcy.
In addition to the new Enid upgrade, KF recently announced a $90 million investment in its Beatrice, Neb., plant (GM Nov. 13, 2020) which includes 75,000 st/y of additional UAN capacity, and a $140 million investment in its Fort Dodge, Iowa, plant (GM Nov. 20, 2020), which includes an 85,000 st/y increase in ammonia capacity.