Brazilian state-owned Petrobras on Aug. 15 announced that it will invest R$870 million to resume operations at the Araucária Nitrogenados S.A. (ANSA) fertilizer plant, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the company.
Located in the state of Paraná, the plant has been inactive since 2020 when Petrobras said it was mothballing the facility due to recurring losses and a failure to find a buyer (GM Jan. 17, 2020). The reopening of ANSA was approved in June 2024 and production is expected to begin in the second half of 2025 (GM May 3, p. 30).
The plant has a production capacity of 720,000 mt/y of urea, which represents 8% of the Brazilian market, and 475,000 mt/y of ammonia. The project aligns with the company’s previously approved 2024-2028 Strategic Plan, whereby investment in fertilizer production has been reinstated as part of Petrobras’ portfolio.
The plant is currently in the process of contracting services and acquiring materials, followed by the mobilization of service contracts and equipment maintenance before operations commence. According to the company’s statement, former plant employees have already resumed their work activities following an agreement proposed by the Labor Prosecutor’s Office and ratified by the Superior Labor Court in June.
Petrobras also owns a partially completed nitrogen fertilizer complex, Unidade de Fertilizantes Nitrogenados III (UFN-III), in Três Lagoas, Mato Grosso do Sul state. Additionally, it owns plants at Bahia (Fafen-BA) and Sergipe (Fafen-SE) that it leased to Unigel (GM Aug. 14, 2020), which are currently not in operation. Petrobras recently ended its contract with Unigel (GM July 5, p. 26).