The Phosphate Chemicals Export Association Inc. (PhosChem) took in one new member last week and was notified that it lost another. CF Industries Inc.’s membership became official Oct. 1, and Mississippi Phosphates Corp. announced it would leave the organization Dec. 31, 2006.
Miss Phos spokeswoman Melinda Hood said the move was a “market and business-related decision.” The company notified PhosChem of its decision Sept. 29. She said the company’s focus has been on the domestic market for some time, and that the relationship with PhosChem had been positive.
Miss Phos, which suffered major damage from Hurricane Katrina in the summer of 2005 (GM Sept. 19, 2005, p. 1), still has commitments for export shipments through the end of the year, and it will honor those. “We will probably continue to make export sales (in the future), but our focus will be on the domestic market.”
Some, citing the Miss Phos location in Pascagoula on a deep-water port, said it is unlikely the company will ignore the international market altogether, especially when the international market is giving a better return on product than the domestic, as is the current situation. Sources speculate that the company’s export sales after the first of the year will most likely be made by third parties, such as ConAgra, which has enjoyed a positive relationship with Miss Phos.
Miss Phos ammonium phosphate P205 capacity stands at 399,000 st/y, or about 4.1 percent of U.S. capacity, according to the International Fertilizer Development Center. With the addition of CF to the PhosChem mix, Miss Phos would have been an even smaller player within the group.