Cairo-Orascom Construction Industries (OCI) and FITCO Tradecom do Brazil Ltda., part of Brazilian-based company Group Fertipar, have confirmed that they have entered into a strategic alliance through the signing of an agreement for the supply and import of granular urea fertilizers into Brazil. FITCO, a fertilizer trading company with a great deal of experience in the Brazilian market, aims to enhance domestic demand, as well as develop further marketing and sales for OCI’s fertilizer products through regular supply to its network and to third parties. FITCO also has a growing presence in several Latin American countries. The strategic supply agreement is initially focused on nitrogen-based fertilizers, specifically for granular urea, during 2009. An initial export shipment for 30,000 mt from OCI’s fertilizer plant in Egypt destined to Brazil is currently being executed under this arrangement. The agreement encompasses a mutual exclusivity arrangement on a right of first refusal basis for the supply and import of granular urea fertilizer into the Brazilian market. “We are pleased to start this new partnership with FITCO International,” said OCI CEO Nassef Sawiris. “The current agreement connects our efficient production infrastructure in North Africa with FITCO’s state-of-the-art fertilizer distribution network in Brazil on a sustainable basis. We believe this partnership has room to grow in the future as we pursue potentially larger synergies.”
Transparency Across the Fertilizer Value-Chain