Feed and food supplier The Wenger Group Inc., Rheems, Penn., reports that it has signed a definitive purchase agreement to acquire Risser Grain LLC, a grain and agronomy company based in Holtwood, Penn. The transaction includes the acquisition of seven grain operating locations as well as the Martinsburg, Penn., mill, which Wenger recently began operating under a leasing arrangement with an affiliate of Risser. In addition, the deal includes Risser’s fertilizer production capacity, which Wenger says is among the largest in the state.
“We have enjoyed a strategic relationship with Risser for many years as one of our key ingredient suppliers that is critical to sustaining our operations,” said Phil Rohrbaugh, Wenger President and CEO. “Expanding into grain operations further strengthens our reliability and sustainability as a manufacturer of feed for protein producers. The acquisition will also enable us to better support our agronomy partners, who play a critical role in the food supply chain and how we meet our customer needs.”
Risser will now be a wholly-owned subsidiary of Wenger, with the Risser Grain name and brand continuing. It will operate separately with Brent Risser remaining as President and all of the Risser employees staying in place. Risser Grain has 40 employees, according to Lancaster, Penn.-based newspaper LNP.
“We are extremely excited about this strategic combination,” said Brent Risser. “With the support of the Wenger organization, we will be able to offer even more attention to regional grain producers and to our end-user customer base. Ensuring sustainability is crucial to maintaining a strong and growing agricultural sector in our region and beyond.”
Risser Grain is a 45-year-old family-owned grain dealer of corn, wheat, soybeans, and barley as well as an exclusive distributer of custom mixed fertilizer. According to its website, it supplies grain seed and multiple kinds of fertilizers (N, P, K, micronutrients), including both dry, liquid (UAN and APP) and nitrification inhibitors. It lists a state-of-the-art fertilizer blend plant and warehouse at Red Lion, Penn., which also has a grain receiving facility. The company also has fertilizer blending and grain receiving at its Turbotville, Penn., location, where it also offers fertilizer and lime spreading, a rail siding with shipping and receiving capabilities. Grain receiving facilities are located at Holtwood, Mainville, Chambersburg and Milton as well as Martinsburg which has over 600,000 bushel capacity. The company says it works with Snyder’s Crop Care to provide precision fertilizer application. It is also a Snyder tank dealer.
Along with other companies, Risser Grain recently commented to the U.S. Trade Representative against duties on nitrogen fertilizer imports from the European Union (GM Aug. 23, p. 1), which could have also snared specialty fertilizers made by companies such as Yara International ASA, Oslo.
Wenger is a 75-year-old family-owned agricultural products and services organization, specializing in the regional supply of feed (poultry and swine), soybean processing, transportation, food products (eggs, poultry and pork) and allied services. Its units include Wenger Feeds LLC, Nutrify LLC and Dutchland Farms LLC. It has over 350 team employees and nine feed milling locations in two states.
The Mosaic Co., Plymouth, Minn., announced Oct. 10 it will temporarily curtail production at its Esterhazy mine, which, when combined with a previously announced potash curtailment, brings its total potash curtailments to up to 600,000 mt. It cited increasing inventories as a result of the short-term slowdown in global potash markets and increased risks of a delay in settlement of the Chinese supply contract for the increased curtailment.
Mosaic said the curtailment is not expected to impact the pace of development at the Esterhazy mine K3 project. If the full amount of the curtailment is realized in lower fourth quarter sales, it would result in a negative impact of approximately $150 million in adjusted EBITDA, it said.
“While near-term fertilizer markets remain challenging, we continue to expect a very strong application season in Brazil and North America, and a better supply and demand balance in 2020,” said Mosaic President and CEO Joc O’Rourke.
The company switched out higher-cost production at its 2 million mt/y Colonsay mine for production from the new Esterhazy K3 mine in August (GM Aug. 9, p.1).
In August, it also moved down its full-year potash sales volume expectations to 8.7-9.1 million mt from 9-9.4 million mt (GM Aug. 9, p.1). At that time, the company forecast its third-quarter potash sales volumes at 2.2-2.4 million mt. Potash sales volumes for the first six months of 2019 were 4 million mt.
Mosaic said this week it plans to provide updated market commentary when it reports earnings, after market close Nov. 4, 2019.
O’Rourke, in recent conversation with analysts at Sanford C. Bernstein & Co., said current potash prices don’t justify new investments and believes producers “will act rationally” to keep the market tight, according to a Bloomberg report.
K+S, Uralkali, Nutrien Ltd., and Belaruskali have all announced production cut-back plans in recent weeks.
K+S said on Sept. 23 it was reducing production of potassium chloride by up to 300,000 mt by the end of 2019 in response to current weak demand (GM Sept 27, p.14). The company had said in July it would extend a maintenance period planned for September at the Bethune potash plant in Saskatchewan to a total of two weeks (GM July 26, p.14).
Uralkali announced production cut-back plans for the second-half of the year on Sept. 20 (GM Sept. 20, p.1; Sept. 27, p.14), which followed announcements earlier in September by Nutrien (GM Sept. 13, p.1; Sept. 27, p.14) and Belaruskali (GM Sept. 6, p.14; Sept. 27, p.14) to cut potash output.
Israel Chemicals Ltd. (ICL) reported at the end of July the company planned a three-week shutdown for a plant upgrade at the Dead Sea site towards the end of this year, which would take out about 180,000 mt of ICL’s overall output and sales in the second half of this year (GM Aug. 2, p.28). The Israeli company typically takes the plant offline for just one-week for maintenance.
The European Union (E.U.) has imposed definitive antidumping duties on urea ammonium nitrate (UAN) imported into its member countries from Russia, the U.S. and Trinidad and Tobago. The measures came into force on Oct.10 and will remain in place for a period of five years. The new duties will be a fixed amount per ton of UAN, and follow provisional measures that were imposed on April 12 (GM April 12, p.1; March 22, p.1).
Definitive Duties
Country
Company
Definitive Duty Rate (%)1
Definitive Fixed Duty Rate €/mt
Russia
PJSC Acron and all other Russian companies except JSC Azot and JSC Nevinnomyssky Azot
31.9
42.47
Russia
JSC Azot and JSC Nevinnomyssky Azot (both part of EuroChem Group AG)
20.0
27.77
U.S.
CF Industries Holdings Inc.
23.9
29.48
U.S.
All other U.S. companies
23.9
29.48
Trinidad and Tobago
Methanol Holdings (Trinidad) Ltd.
16.2
22.24
Trinidad and Tobago
All other Trinidad and Tobago companies
16.2
22.24
1Expressed as a percentage of the CIF Union frontier price, duty unpaid
The provisional measures implemented by the E.U. in April took the form of ad valorem duties ranging from 16.3 percent against Trinidad and Tobago’s Methanol Holdings (Trinidad) Ltd. and all other Trinidad and Tobago producers, and up to 34 percent for all Russian producers except Acron, where a 31.9 percent duty was imposed. U.S. producers, including CF Industries Holdings Inc., had a 22.6 percent provisional duty imposed (GM April 12, p.1; March 22, p.1). These levies were expressed as a percentage of the CIF Union frontier price, duty unpaid.
“Volatility in the import prices of UAN requires the definitive antidumping measures to take the form of duties expressed in euros per mt,” the European Commission said in its Official Journal published Oct. 9.
It said there is “a genuine risk that an ad valorem duty might either be insufficient to eliminate injury when prices are low or unduly hurt the user industry when prices are peaking.”
Because the definitive duty rates for Trinidad and Tobago companies and for Russia (except Acron) are lower than the provisional duties that were imposed, the EU will as a result refund importers the difference with the five-year duties.
The E.U. initiated the UAN dumping investigation into Russian, U.S and Trinidad and Tobago shipments in August 2018, following a complaint filed in June of that year by Brussels-based Fertilizers Europe on behalf of producers that account for more than 50 percent of the E.U.’s output of UAN (GM Aug. 17, 2018).
Imports of UAN into the E.U. from the three countries in the 12 months to June 30, 2018 (the period covered by the E.U. investigation) totalled over 1.72 million mt, accounting for some 37.7 percent of the E.U. market for UAN, according to the EU’s Official Journal, citing Eurostat data
During that period, imports from Russia reached some 613,000 mt, with some 742,000 mt and 368,000 mt coming from the U.S. and Trinidad and Tobago, respectively, according to the EU’s Official Journal, citing Eurostat data.
Two Rivers Terminal, Pasco, Wash., reported that it will soon be firing up its new sulfur forming site in Moses Lake, Wash., where the company plans to produce 11-0-0-75 Urea Thiogro and sulfur bentonite products with both 85 and 90 percent sulfur. The facility will boast a nameplate capacity of 70,000 st/y, according to General Manager Steve Peot.
Two Rivers announced in September 2018 (GM Sept. 28, 2018) that it had licensed Shell Thiogro Technology to produce 11-0-0-75, which it described as a highly concentrated sulfur enhanced fertilizer to be marketed to growers in the Pacific Northwest and California. Peot told Green Markets the new site will be operational in the next month or two, pending the finalization of permits, and will be the first U.S. facility to offer 11-0-0-75.
The product will be produced on IPCO Rotoforms using Shell Thiogro Urea-ES technology, a patented process to incorporate micronized elemental sulfur in a matrix of urea. Shell Global Bitumen and Sulfur has touted 11-0-0-75 as a superior product to ammonium sulfate and sulfur bentonite, and a viable replacement for both.
Two Rivers also announced that Rob Mann had been hired as General Manager of the company’s formed sulfur business. In this role, Mann will have complete oversite of the solid sulfur operations, including procurement and marketing. The company reported that it is completing some plant upgrades and a “minor expansion” of its ammonium thiosulfate production operation as well, with capacity pegged at about 20,000 st/y.
Two Rivers is a diversified chemical formulator, distributor, and importer, with facilities in Pasco, Moses Lake, and Umatilla, Ore. These facilities have bulk storage capacity of more than 15,000 tons of liquid and 18,000 tons of dry products. In addition, the company operates two packaged goods warehouses used for the storage of packaged specialty chemicals and imported products.
Sirius Minerals plc, Scarborough, England, said on Oct. 11 it has inked an exclusive 10-year supply and distribution agreement with Qatar Chemical and Petrochemical Marketing and Distribution Co., known as ‘Muntajat.’ The deal, which was agreed through Sirius’ subsidiary, York Potash Ltd., is for the sale and distribution of volumes of Poly4 into Africa (except Nigeria and Egypt), Australia, New Zealand, and certain remaining Middle-Eastern and Asian territories.
Contracted volumes under the agreement increase to around 2 million mt/y in year five and peak at 2.1 million mt/y in year eight, and take Sirius’ aggregate peak polyhalite sales volumes to 13.8 million mt/y.
Muntajat is a state-owned Qatari company which markets and distributes approximately 9 million mt/y of fertilizer.
Qatar is already an investor in Sirius. This past May, the Qatar Investment Authority, Doha, acquired 3.28 percent of Sirius (GM May 24, p. 29).
The new supply agreement with Muntajat provides Sirius with access to a number of new markets for Poly4, said Sirius Minerals Managing Director and CEO Chris Fraser in a statement.
He revealed that the U.K. company is also working with Muntajat to explore the downstream combination of Poly4 with nitrogen products in Qatar and/or the U.K. to create a value-added multi-nutrient fertilizer.
Muntajat represents and is exclusively responsible for the global sales and distribution of products from 15 major industrial production entities in Qatar and for marketing, selling and distributing all of Qatar’s fertilizer production. The Qatari company has a global marketing network servicing more than 3,000 customers in 135 counties.
The Sirius deal with Muntajat includes a five-year extension option and the Qatar company has the right to terminate the agreement in the event that Sirius does not meet certain financing or operational milestones. In turn, Sirius can terminate Muntajat’s distribution rights in relation to a specific territory if the Qatar company fails to distribute 75 percent of the contracted minimum volumes for such territory over a three-year rolling period.
The pricing mechanism in the agreement is linked to downstream pricing received by Muntajat on the sale of Poly4 and incentivizes the Qatar company to optimize the best FOB netback price for Sirius, the U.K. company said. It added that it expects the deal to deliver pricing in line with its average price expectations across its current supply agreement portfolio
In the meantime, Sirius hopes to complete a strategic review by the end of this month, including having “a good idea” of alternative funding options for its North Yorkshire polyhalite mine and processing plant under development in northeast England, CEO Fraser said in an interview this week with the U.K.’s The Times newspaper. He said it would take around six months to implement the resulting plans.
Sirius has said that the strategic review would include the potential to bring in a partner for the acquisition of “a significant part” of the project (GM Sept. 20, p.1). Analysts at the London branch of Germany’s Berenberg said in a client note earlier this month that a strategic investor could be the only lifeline left for the company (GM Oct. 4. p. 23).
Sirius announced last month that it had cancelled plans to raise US$500 million through a bond issue (GM Sept. 20, p.1). The bond raising had been a critical part of the US$3.8 billion Stage 2 financing needed to complete the polyhalite project, and the bond’s successful completion was key to unlocking a US$2.5 billion revolving credit facility (RCF) from JP Morgan Securities LLC (GM May 3, p. 1).
One option now could be to raise a much smaller amount of money and fund the construction of the parts of the project – such as the mine shafts – that project finance banks and the bond market are said to be “least comfortable with”, according to Fraser.
Following the decision to abandon the bond issue, Sirius began slowing construction at the project site in order to conserve funds and started a strategic review to assess and incorporate optimizations to the project development plan that could reduce overall capital costs and reduce risk to debt holders (GM Sept. 20, p.1).
Berenberg analysts in the client note said they believed Sirius’ North Yorkshire project now had only a 25 percent probability of completion, and said the risks of securing financing are seen as outweighing the potential returns (GM Oct. 4, p. 23). Even in a best-case scenario, they see further delays to start-up as likely. Up until recent events, Sirius had been touting first polyhalite output in 2021.
Fraser confirmed in the interview that 300 staff had lost their jobs following the decision to abandon the bond issue and the collapse of the markets-led stage-2 financing plan.
The company has had to return to investors the proceeds of US$400 million convertible bonds due 2027, raised in May as part of the company’s stage 2 financing (GM May 3, p. 1). But it says it has enough cash to keep going for about six months (GM Sept. 20, p.1).
Fraser in the newspaper interview lashed out at online shareholder chat forums, and believes the bulletin boards should be investigated by the U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). According to The Times, Fraser believes a 10 percent fall in Sirius’ share price the afternoon prior to its funding announcement may have been caused by a post on an online forum reportedly falsely claiming the company was about to announce an equity raise. The FCA declined to comment, according to the newspaper.
U.S. Gulf:
NOLA granular prompt prices continued to move lower, with sources putting recent trades at $236-$245/st FOB, down from the week-ago $245-$252/st FOB. By Wednesday, prices had dropped to the low $240s/st FOB, but continued to decline Thursday. While some had speculated that the MMTC tender might bump up prices that was not the case for NOLA, where sources said incoming imports and worries about the fall season were putting a damper on prices.
Prills were called $260-$270/st FOB, down from the earlier $270-$272/st FOB.
U.S. Imports:
July-August urea imports were up 32 percent, to 388,573 st from the year-ago 294,559 st. They slacked off in August, however, falling 11 percent to 187,276 st from the year-ago 209,267 st.
U.S. Exports:
July-August urea exports were off 43 percent to 192,426 st from the year-ago 337,944 st. August exports were down 21 percent to 130,974 st from the year-ago 165,881 st.
Eastern Cornbelt:
Urea pricing remained at $280-$290/st FOB in the Eastern Cornbelt, with the low confirmed at Cincinnati, Ohio.
Western Cornbelt:
Urea pricing was down slightly at $275/st FOB St. Louis, Mo., and $280-$285/st FOB Caruthersville, Mo. The Iowa urea market was quoted at $290/st FOB and $290-$300/st DEL, with the St. Paul, Minn., market remaining at $280-$285/st FOB for fall tons.
Southern Plains:
With barge transit finally restored to the Arkansas River in early October, sources reported urea pricing in the $290-$295/st range FOB Catoosa/Inola, Okla., at midweek, down from a recent high of $315/st FOB.
The Houston urea market was also reported at the $295/st FOB level at mid-month, while pricing at Enid, Okla., fell at the $285/st FOB mark, give or take.
South Central:
Urea pricing remained in a broad range at $270-$290/st FOB terminals in the South Central region, with the low confirmed at Convent, La., and the upper end out of Arkansas River terminals. The Memphis, Tenn., urea market was unchanged at $285/st FOB in mid-October.
Southeast:
Urea pricing was up slightly at $300-$310/st FOB port terminals in the Southeast, reflecting a $10/st increase from last report, with the low quoted at Wilmington, N.C., and the upper end at Charleston, S.C.
India:
MMTC called a tender for prilled or granular urea to close on Oct. 14. Industry sources were not surprised that a tender was called, but what was unusual was the fact that the tender was called more than a week before the last day of shipping for the last tender. Sources now figure that all the vessels for the awarded tonnage in the last tender were nominated so there would not be any conflict between the old and new tenders.
India is said to be desperate for more urea. The rains got better, pushing back the closing of the current season by at least two weeks, said one trader. The positive weather led farmers to pick up their urea buying. Sources estimate that MMTC will try to buy 1 million tons in the latest tender.
Pricing ideas for this tender are expected to either remain at the current $275-$278/mt CFR level or go up a couple of bucks. Sources said freight rates have been increasing in the past few weeks. The increase in bunker fuel and other handling costs is coming as producers in China and the Arab Gulf are digging in their heels against any further price drops.
The bulk of the hoped-for 1 million tons is expected to come from Arab Gulf suppliers. Traders said Chinese sources are telling them 400,000-600,000 mt will be available for export, depending on the strength of the just-starting Chinese season. Several sources said the odds are that less than half-a-million tons will be backed by Chinese producers.
Arab producers are expected to have enough tons to help MMTC reach its million-ton goal. The issue will be the price.
In the last tender, ADNOC came in at $254/mt FOB for 225,000 mt when other producers were publicly saying the price was $260/mt FOB with not a lot of tonnage available from the Gulf. Sources now say the lack of demand from major Arab Gulf buyers in Australia, Thailand, and the U.S. could mean more material is available for India.
Even if MMTC takes 1 million tons in this tender, sources said another tender will be called soon after the ship-by date of Nov. 18. At that time, if the rains continue, another million tons could be purchased to close out the season and lay in reserves for the next season.
The big issue for the Indians will be to keep an eye on the tons coming from China. Previously some award winners have attempted to slip in Iranian urea stored in Chinese bonded warehouses. This so-called “Chi-Ranian” urea is not allowed under the terms of the MMTC tender documents.
In the past, however, some port authorities have issued documents that disguised the origin of the Iranian product. In some cases, the Chinese government discovered the “creative paperwork” and prosecuted the port authorities. In other instances, competitors pointed out the loading of differently marked Iranian product to the Indian inspectors, forcing the loading to stop and the trader to find compliant urea to fulfill its award.
One trader said if the Iranian product can be loaded without detection, the trader could turn a nice profit. However, he said there are always a bunch of other traders keeping an eye on the warehoused Iranian product, and who stand ready to report any effort to slip the tons into the Indian supply chain. Sources repeatedly have criticized the low price offered by Iran as a major disruptive force in the global market.
China:
Sources said prices remain steady at around $260/mt FOB for prilled and granular urea. The stability in the price is said to be more a result of positive expectations of a strong domestic season rather than of the influence of the MMTC tender.
The application season kicked off this week. Demand is slow so far, said sources, but weather patterns suggest things should pick up in the next few weeks. Producers are calculating that demand will be strong enough for them to hold to the $260/mt FOB price for international buyers, without missing a beat. However, traders said producers seem willing to engage in talks at just under the $260/mt FOB mark. One trader said he was close to a deal at around $255/mt FOB, but others questioned whether the deal will be concluded at that level.
How strong the producers perceive the domestic market to be will help determine how many tons they make available to international traders for the Indian MMTC tender. If there are indications of a slow but steady start, sources said producers may make as many as 600,000 mt available for export. If demand spikes through this weekend, however, available tons may be as low as 300,000 mt. Many in the industry think the producers will be good for at least 400,000 mt, regardless of the local demand.
With producers ready to hold to current levels in the low-$260s/mt FOB, sources said the landed price in India will have to come up a few dollars to reflect the slight increase in freight costs. Sources now say the shipping rate has moved closer to $18/mt for an East Coast India delivery, instead of the previous $16/mt.
Reportedly Chinese authorities will continue to keep an eye on the Iranian urea in bonded warehouses to see that no local port officer engages in “creative paperwork” to disguise the origin of the product. The Iranian urea in the warehouses has been shipped in small lots to buyers in Asia who either received waivers to buy the product or who don’t care about facing the wrath of the U.S. Treasury Department.
Brazil:
The price of urea around the country ranges from offers close to $285/mt CFR to bids of $270/mt CFR. Sources said some business had been done at the $275-$280/mt CFR level, with the possibility that a few deals could have been concluded in the low-$270s/mt CFR early in the week. Brazilian traders said it is unlikely that much of the low-$270/mt CFR material is still available, however.
Demand for urea remains spotty even as more tons keep arriving. Sources said demand should be picking up at this time of year. Buyers have already prepared for more tons to come in from the usual places such as North Africa and the Arab Gulf. Even about 170,000 mt of Iranian product is arriving this month.
The delay in moving more tons out of warehouses and out to the fields is coming from farmers, who are reportedly not seeing prices for their products rising high enough to justify large-scale fertilizer purchases. Traders said the inland buying appears to be limited to hand-to-mouth purchases at this point. Sources put the total amount of urea imported from January through September of this year at 3.5 million tons, about 3 percent higher than last year.
The supply pipeline is crowded with urea, from the ports to the local distributors. One trader said there are reportedly vessels coming into various ports around the country with no buyers lined up to take the product. He noted that usually at this time of year the urea is sold to a specific buyer inland even before the ship enters the harbor.
The low crop prices, combined with a weak real against the U.S. dollar, are affecting the farmers’ willingness to step up to make long-term purchases. The excess urea in the market is also being aggravated by reports that some local buyers are looking to other cheaper sources of nitrogen. One trader pointed to purchases of ammonium sulfate and NPK by some distributors instead of urea for their local users.
To add more confusion to the market, sources said the presence of cheaper Iranian urea in the southern part of the country is affecting sales in other markets. Sources estimate that the product is $20-$25/mt cheaper than urea from the Arab Gulf and North Africa. At the same time, the Iranian product is only available to distributors in the southern states of Santa Catarina and Parana.
A cargo of Iranian urea is being unloaded from the Golafruz this weekend. The vessel is discharging its 66,000 mt of urea at Imbituba in the state of Santa Catarina. In return, it will take on a cargo of grain for Iran. A second vessel, the Amina, is scheduled to arrive on Oct. 15 with 65,000 mt of urea, also in a urea-for-grain barter deal.
So far this year about 310,000 mt of urea from Iran has been sent to Brazil under a loophole in the U.S. sanctions that allows for countries to provide agriculture products to Iran in a barter exchange for other products. In this case, Iran has been taking corn, wheat, and soybeans from Brazil in exchange for urea.
Earlier this year, two vessels faced a problem of not being able to buy the fuel necessary to return home because of the U.S. sanctions. The Brazilian courts eventually ordered the state-run petroleum company to provide the fuel so the ships could return home with their bartered goods.
International traders said they have heard reports that buyers in other states in central Brazil are also applying for permission to import the Iranian urea. Sources said the buyers must navigate complicated paperwork to avoid facing sanctions from the U.S. for dealing in sanctioned material.
Presently the Iranian material that has entered Brazil has been handled by one company, which has taken it through a process of “nationalizing” before mixing it with urea from other sources for inland distribution. This nationalization process is not any different from what urea from the Arab Gulf and North Africa faces. Sources said the cost to the importer is about $35/mt.
If more states receive permission to use the Iranian urea, sources said the national government will have to arrange for Iranian vessels to have permission to stop in ports other than Imbituba, to avoid a repeat of the sanctions affecting the unloading, loading, and fueling of the ships. Trucking the product from the far south to even the middle of the country would require more trucks, and more robust accounting tools.
Besides keeping the value of the Iranian tons separate from other sourced urea, each state the product passes through will attach a tax on the product based on its value when it entered the state. This transit tax is imposed even if the urea is destined only for another state.
Bangladesh:
The BCIC tender for 25,000 mt of granular urea and 50,000 mt of prilled urea closed on Oct. 7. Offers showed a lower price, reflecting the general decline in the global urea market.
The tally for the tender follows. The product is to be bagged before shipping. Sources said the source for most of the offers appears to be China.
25,000 mt Granular Urea for Chittagong Port
Offering Company
US$/mt CFR Bagged
Swiss Singapore
297.30
Agrifert Liven
304.87
Aries
306.41
Gentrade
307.22
Wilson
309.95
50,000 mt Granular Urea for Mongla Port
Offering Company
US$/mt CFR Bagged
Swiss Singapore
299.10
Agrifert Liven
305.97
Gentrade
307.22
Aries
309.41
Wilson
309.77
Middle East:
Arab Gulf producers are reportedly beginning to ask for prices above $260/mt FOB now that India has called another urea tender. Sources said no deals have been done that break that level, however.
Higher freight rates and an aggressive attitude by the Indian buyer could mean that the netback price to the producers does not move, even as the landed price goes up a dollar or two. Sources are expecting to see the Arab Gulf offers in the Indian tender to be in the low-$260s/mt FOB, but the offers could end up back in the mid-$250s/mt FOB.
Two producers in Egypt took advantage of the positive pricing views this week. MOPCO sold 30,000 mt of granular urea at $255/mt FOB, a $5/mt bump in prices from last week. By the end of this week, Helwan sold 17,000 mt at $257/mt FOB.
Sources said the drop to $250/mt FOB last week was too low and required a quick correction. The news of the Indian urea tender, combined with some interest from European buyers for prompt tons, pushed the price back up.
U.S. Gulf/Tampa:
Tampa for October remained at $255/mt CFR, with NOLA barges at $235/st FOB. Still fresh off of the $30/mt Tampa increase for October, most sources believe there is enough tightness in the market to merit another increase in November. Still, their optimism for the amount has waned a bit. As of this week, sources were predicting a rollover to slight uptick for November.
U.S. Imports:
July-August ammonia imports were down 21 percent, to 400,341 st from the year-ago 506,422 st, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. August imports were down 30 percent, to 183,801 st from 264,260 st.
U.S. Exports:
July-August ammonia exports were off 67 percent, to 46,863 st from the year-ago 140,537 st. August exports were off 24 percent, to 38,050 st from 50,096 st.
Eastern Cornbelt:
The ammonia market was pegged at a firm $390-$400/st FOB in the Eastern Cornbelt, with the low in Illinois and the upper end in Indiana and Ohio, depending on location.
Western Cornbelt:
Sources confirmed higher ammonia prices in the Western Cornbelt during the week. The market was quoted firmly at $380-$390/st FOB in Nebraska and $385-$390/st FOB in Iowa and at Palmyra, Mo.
Southern Plains:
The ammonia market was quoted at $280-$320/st FOB Oklahoma production points, with the higher end of the range quoted at Verdigris, Okla. “It seems like a good fall run ahead assuming it dries out a bit and crops get out on time,” said one regional contact.
South Central:
The ammonia market was quoted at $250-$270/st FOB South Central terminals for truck tons, with the low reported at Midway, Tenn., and the upper end at Cherokee, Ala. No current ammonia pricing was reported at Memphis, and sources said the terminal there will likely by down until the end of the year for maintenance.
Out of Gulf Coast production points, the truck ammonia market had reportedly firmed to $250-$260/st FOB, up roughly $30/st following the higher close for October Tampa ammonia.
Trinidad:
Nutrien confirmed on Oct. 9 that its No. 4 ammonia plant in Trinidad would be restarting over the next week. The company reported on Sept. 17 (GM Sept. 20, p. 3) that the cooling tower at the plant had collapsed.
The outage added to an already tight ammonia market, according to some sources, who said it, along with other outages, had a hand in the $30/mt increase at Tampa in October.
U.S. Gulf:
UAN barges continued to be called $155-$160/st ($4.84-$5.00/unit) FOB. East Coast vessel pricing remained at $155-$160/mt CFR.
U.S. Imports:
July-August UAN imports were up 23 percent, to 518,586 st from the year-ago 423,019 st. They were off 25 percent in August, however, to 184,049 st from 246,452 st.
U.S. Exports:
July-August UAN exports were down 28 percent, to 271,672 st from the year-ago 377,456 st. August exports were off 39 percent, to 123,304 st from 201,432 st.
Eastern Cornbelt:
The UAN-32 market was unchanged at $185-$205/st ($5.78-$6.41/unit) FOB regional terminals in the Eastern Cornbelt, depending on location, with the low confirmed at Cincinnati and the high out of spot Illinois River terminals. The UAN-28 market was steady at $162-$163/st ($5.79-$5.82/unit) FOB Cincinnati.
Western Cornbelt:
UAN-32 was steady at $185-$205/st ($5.78-$6.41/unit) FOB in the Western Cornbelt, with the low reported at St. Louis. The market out of Iowa terminals was quoted firmly in the $195-$205/st ($6.09-$6.41/unit) FOB range for the week, depending on location.
Southern Plains:
The UAN-32 market was quoted at $180-$200/st ($5.63-$6.25/unit) FOB regional production points for tons pulled through December, with spot pricing out of Gulf Coast terminals in Texas pegged in the $180-$185/st ($5.63-$5.78/unit) FOB range.
South Central:
The UAN-32 market remained at $180-$190/st ($5.63-$5.94/unit) FOB terminals in the South Central region, with the low reported by Kentucky sources out of spot river locations. Pricing FOB Memphis and West Helena, Ark., was tagged at the $185/st ($5.78/unit) FOB level, unchanged from last report.
Southeast:
The UAN-32 market remained at $175/st ($5.47/unit) FOB Wilmington and Norfolk, Va., with the upper end of the regional range quoted at the $204/st ($6.38/unit) FOB level out of inland Georgia terminals.
U.S. Gulf:
NOLA ammonium sulfate barges continued to be put at $190-$200/st FOB.
U.S. Imports:
Ammonium sulfate imports are down so far this fertilizer year, falling 3 percent in July-August to 63,894 st from 65,898 st, and 19 percent in August to 19,650 st from 24,259 st.
U.S. Exports:
July-August ammonium sulfate exports were off 46 percent, to 101,722 st from the year-ago 186,961 st. August exports were up 4 percent, however, to 90,239 st from the year-ago 87,014 st,
Eastern Cornbelt:
The granular ammonium sulfate market was steady at $225-$255/st FOB in the Eastern Cornbelt, depending on location and point of origin, with the low reported in Illinois on a spot basis. The Cincinnati market remained at the $230/st FOB level at midweek.
Western Cornbelt:
Granular ammonium sulfate was pegged at $235-$245/st FOB in the Western Cornbelt, with the low confirmed at St. Louis and Caruthersville and the upper end out of Iowa terminals. The St. Paul market remained at $230-$235/st FOB for the week.
Southern Plains:
The granular ammonium sulfate market was quoted at $210-$220/st FOB on the Texas Gulf Coast, up slightly from last report. With supply now restored to the Catoosa/Inola market, sources pegged the ammonium sulfate price at the $225/st FOB level at that location.
South Central:
Granular ammonium sulfate pricing was unchanged at $225-$235/st FOB in the South Central region, with the low confirmed at Memphis and the upper end out of Arkansas River terminals.
Southeast:
Ammonium sulfate pricing FOB Hopewell, Va., was up $10/st from the last fill program offers, with new postings at $225/st for granular and $185/st for standard. Delivered granular tons were pegged at the $245/st level in the Southeast, with standard quoted at $205/st DEL in the Florida market.
Brazil:
Sources said ammonium sulfate prices remain stable in the $170s/mt CFR. There is some new demand reported as some inland buyers look for nitrogen sources other than urea.
U.S. Gulf:
Ammonium nitrate barge prices continued at $170/st FOB.
U.S. Imports:
July-August ammonium nitrate imports were up 20 percent, to 111,400 st from the year-ago 92,808 st. August imports were up 191 percent, to 74,291 st from the year-ago 25,560 st.
U.S. Exports:
July-August ammonium nitrate exports were up 2 percent, to 83,972 st from the year-ago 82,225 st. August exports were off 3 percent, however, to 42,790 st from 44,312 st.
Western Cornbelt:
Ammonium nitrate pricing remained at a nominal $255-$265/st FOB in the Western Cornbelt, where available.
Southern Plains:
The ammonium nitrate market was quoted at the $230/st FOB level in Oklahoma, where available, reflecting a $20/st drop from last report.
South Central:
The ammonium nitrate market had reportedly slipped to $230-$250/st FOB in the South Central region, depending on location.
Southeast:
The ammonium nitrate market was steady at $235-$240/st FOB Tampa.
Disclaimer of Warranty
All information has been obtained by Green Markets from sources believed to be reliable. However, because of the possibility of human or mechanical error by our sources, Green Markets or others, Green Markets does not guarantee the accuracy, adequacy, or completeness of any information and is not responsible for any errors or omissions or for the results obtained from the use of such information.
