All Posts from March 12, 2013

Small NH3 leak does not impact Honeywell production

Honeywell said today that a small anhydrous ammonia leak at its Hopewell, Va., plant late Monday afternoon did not impact ammonia or ammonium sulfate production. At around 4:30 p.m. a leak was detected by the plant’s safety systems in an area undergoing maintenance. Honeywell said the leak was contained to a small area of the facility and there were no indications of offsite impact and no injuries. The plant implemented established safety procedures and notified local emergency responders. The company told Green Markets that the source of the leak appears to be a gasket, but the company is working to determine the cause of the leak and the amount released. The company emphasized that it was a minor leak in an area that was not in production as it was under maintenance.

India projects fertilizer needs

Indian farmers will need about 15.3 million mt of urea, 6.5 million mt of DAP, and 2 million mt of MOP for the Karif season, running roughly May through October. NPK demand was pegged at 5.5 million mt and SSPs at 2.5 million mt. The Karif season accounts for a little more than half of the total fertilizer needs.

The estimate was presented by the joint secretary of crops at the agriculture ministry during a conference for state government agriculture officials earlier this week. The government also reiterated its desire to become urea self-sufficient in the next five years.

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs approved a new policy that would encourage new investments in domestic urea production. An independent rating agency, ICRA, said the policy could result in five to six plants either being refurbished or built from scratch by 2019. If the plants come online, the ICRA said an additional 8-10 million mt would be added to domestic production.

So far this year urea sales totaled 27.8 million mt with imports accounting for just less than 7 million mt.

Sulvaris partners with Keyera for new sulfur fertilizer plant

Sulvaris Inc., a privately-held company based in Calgary, Alberta, has announced that it has signed definitive agreements with Keyera Partnership, one of the largest midstream operators in Canada, for the construction, ownership, and operation of a new sulfur fertilizer production facility in central Alberta.

The new facility, which was first announced earlier this year (Green Markets Feb. 4, p. 1), will convert elemental sulfur into Vitasul, a premium plant nutrient sulfur fertilizer. It will be built on the site of Keyera’s existing Strachan Gas Plant near Rocky Mountain House, Alberta, about 200 kilometers southwest of Edmonton, Alberta.

The facility will be owned as a 50/50 joint venture between Sulvaris and Keyera, and will have the capacity to produce up to approximately 217,000 mt/y of Vitasul, which Sulvaris will market and distribute in the Canadian, U.S., and Asian markets. Keyera will operate the facility and will produce Vitasul for Sulvaris on a fee-for-service basis.

“With the Vitasul product, we are helping to address plant nutrient sulfur requirements in global agriculture,” said Sulvaris CEO Rick Knoll. “The new Vitasul production facility will service agricultural markets both in North America and abroad.”

Engineering work is currently underway, with construction slated to commence in 2013 and operation planned for early 2014, subject to the receipt of regulatory approvals, the completion of Sulvaris’ financing, and final approval for the project by Keyera and Sulvaris.