All Posts from May 12, 2014

Yara, BASF report NH3 progress, details

News, News Briefs

Oslo — Yara International ASA and BASF report that they have made good progress with their plan to jointly build a world-scale ammonia plant on the U.S. Gulf Coast. The proposed plant would be located at the existing BASF site in Freeport, Tex., have an annual capacity of 750,000 mt, and be based on a hydrogen-synthesis process. The two companies announced last October that they were eyeing a plant in the U.S. Gulf (GM Oct. 21, p. 1), but did not provide a site or capacity projection at the time. They say further details are currently under discussion. The project is subject to final approval from the respective boards of directors of BASF and Yara. BASF, which has a strong presence in the U.S., is currently a major user of ammonia for its U.S. downstream activities and intends to further strengthen its backward integration. Yara, with its global ammonia network and market expertise, seeks to strengthen its presence in the U.S.

American Plant Food Corp. – Management Brief

Management Briefs

American Plant Food Corp. (APF) announced that Brent Kasari has joined the company as Western U.S. sales representative. His territory will include the Southwestern U.S. and Pacific Northwest. Formerly with Agrium U.S. Inc., Kasari brings more than 30 years of experience in both retail and wholesale agricultural sales. “We are very excited to have Brent join our team,” said Jerry Newcomb, APF president and CEO. “Brent’s marketing experience and strong work ethic will be a tremendous asset to APF.” Kasari can be reached at bkasari@apfcorp.net or at 303.478.1722.

ResponsibleAg – Management Brief

Management Briefs

At its first meeting held at the offices of the Asmark Institute in Owensboro, Ky., the ResponsibleAg board of directors last week elected Billy Pirkle, senior director of Environmental Health and Safety for Crop Production Services (CPS), as chairman of the board. Other officers elected were Pete Mutschler of CHS Inc. as secretary, and Scott Rawlins of Wilbur-Ellis as treasurer.

The board will now select a contractor to manage the ResponsibleAg program. A position description for the role was approved and will be circulated by ARA and TFI, with a submission deadline of May 31. A subcommittee of the board will screen the applicants and conduct in-person interviews with the finalists.

The board is also forming a technical committee to oversee the development of specific content of assessment questionnaires, pre-qualification requirements for prospective auditors, and other technical issues. This committee is expected to be named by May 16 and will hold its first meeting in early June. The next board meeting is scheduled for Oct. 15, 2014.

OSHA fines APF for 2013 auger accident

News, News Briefs

Washington — The Occupational Safety and Health Association (OSHA) reported on May 5 that it has cited American Plant Food Corp. (APF), Galena Park, Tex., for 12 health and safety violations and proposed a penalty of $181,000 for “exposing employees to workplace hazards by failing to implement proper energy control procedures that protect workers who service or maintain machines.” OSHA said its investigation was prompted by a November 2013 accident at APF’s Bartlett, Tex., facility where a worker’s leg became entangled in an auger. “This worker’s debilitating injury was preventable had the employer used certain safeguards,” said Casey Perkins, OSHA’s area director in Austin. “As an established company in this industry with long-term management in place, American Plant Food Corp. should not allow such dangerous workplace practices.” OSHA said nine of the violations were labeled as serious, including failure to properly guard machines, electrical equipment, and floor openings; implement lockout procedures for hazardous energy control; or provide access to first aid. OSHA also reported willful violations, which are defined as those committed with “intentional, knowing, or voluntary disregard for the law’s requirements, or with plain indifference to worker safety and health.” These included failure to ensure that adequate safeguards were in place to prevent workers from coming into contact with the auger during servicing and maintenance. OSHA said its investigation also determined that APF did not provide adequate training for workers entering confined spaces and encountering industrial machinery that could unexpectedly startup. APF has 15 business days to comply with or contest the citations, or request an informal conference with OSHA’s Austin area office. OSHA said in its ruling that APF “has a history of OSHA inspections, including two fatality investigations in December 1991 and June 1997, and an inspection of a Fort Worth facility in 2000 where citations were issued related to the control of hazardous energy.” OSHA noted as well that APF employs about 88 workers at 11 facilities in Texas, and that two of the workers exposed at the Bartlett plant had been hired as temporary workers in 2011.

Scotts 2Q income up 26 percent

News, News Briefs

Marysville, Ohio — ScottsMiracle-Gro reported a 26 percent increase in net income, to $125.7 million ($2.00 per diluted share) on sales of $1.08 billion for the second quarter ending March 29, 2014, compared to the year-ago $100 million ($1.62 per share) on sales of $1 billion. Scotts said strong retailer support, pricing adjustments, and the acquisition of the Tomcat rodenticide business drove a 9 percent increase in its Global Consumer sales, to $1.05 billion from the year-ago $962.8 million. Scotts LawnService sales dropped 12 percent to $28.9 million from $32.9 million, primarily due to a late spring season. Six-month net income was $60 million ($0.95 per share) on sales of $1.27 billion, up from the year-ago $32.3 million ($0.51 per share) on sales of $1.2 billion. While Scotts said point-of-sale data through April points to consumer purchases being down, that this is mainly due to the weather and the delayed start to the season. Scotts continues to project full-year adjusted EPS of $3.05-$3.20.

LOL 1Q income up 72 percent

News, News Briefs

Arden Hills, Minn. — Land O’Lakes (LOL) reported first-quarter net earnings of $125 million, 74 percent higher than the $72 million reported during the same period in 2013, while net sales totaled $4.3 billion during this period, 6 percent higher than last year. LOL said the Crop Inputs segment, including the rapidly growing WinField brand, reported strong results as it focused on agribusiness sectors and products with high margins and growth potential. LOL said WinField is building a leadership position in the expanding area of precision agriculture, offering product innovations, insights, and technology-driven services that increase productivity and sustainability for farmers. LOL also reported positive results from its Dairy Foods, Feed, and Layers segments.

Plant Nutrients results down at The Andersons

News, News Briefs

Maumee, Ohio — The Andersons Inc. reported net income of $22.7 million ($0.80 per diluted share) on revenues of $1.0 billion for the first quarter ended March 31, 2014, compared with $12.6 million ($0.45 per diluted share) on revenues of $1.3 billion in last year’s first quarter. The Plant Nutrient Group had a first-quarter operating loss of $1.4 million on revenues of $108 million, compared with last year’s operating loss of $0.6 million on revenues of $112 million. Results were lower than expected due to weather-related fieldwork delays that impacted plant nutrient volumes and margins, but the company said it expects much of this volume to shift to the second quarter. “While the Plant Nutrient Group was impacted by adverse weather in the first quarter, it should benefit from an anticipated significant corn crop planting in the second quarter, as long as the weather cooperates,” said CEO Mike Anderson. The Ethanol and Rail Groups both posted record operating income for the quarter, with the former at $19.8 million on $189 million in revenues, and the latter at $15 million on $52 million in revenues. The company cited strong margins in Ethanol, and increased lease and utilization rates in Rail. The Grain Group reported first-quarter operating income of $11.3 million on revenues of $583 million, compared with the year-ago $8.3 million and $836 million, respectively. The results included a pre-tax gain of $17.1 million from the partial sale of the Lansing Trade Group, while the year-over-year revenue drop was attributed to a nearly 30 percent drop in grain prices. The Turf & Specialty Group posted first-quarter operating income of $1.4 million on revenues of $44 million, compared with last year’s $4.0 million and $47 million, respectively. The Retail Group had an operating loss of $2.3 million on revenues of $28 million for the quarter, compared with last year’s operating loss of $3.2 million on revenues of $31 million.

LSB back in plus column

News, News Briefs

Oklahoma City — LSB Industries Inc. reported a return to positive income applicable to common stock for first quarter 2014, to $11.3 million ($0.49 per dilute share) on sales of $178.5 million, compared to a year-ago loss of $368,000 ($0.02 per share) on sales of $150.7 million. Leading the way for LSB was its Chemical segment, which saw operating income increase to $28.8 million on sales of $115.2 million, compared to the year-ago loss of $3.8 million on sales of $77.5 million. LSB cited the upgrades and expansions that it is making within the Chemical business. Within the Chemical segment, Agricultural sales were up 83 percent, to $59.5 million from the year-ago $32.5 million, while Industrial/Mining/Other (IMO) sales were up 24 percent, to $55.7 million from $45 million. In the Ag sector, all products saw tonnage increases, with UAN at 83,516 st, up from 32,419 st; AN at 86,403 st, up from 39,904 st,; and anhydrous ammonia at 15,057 st, up from 3,012 st. Average UAN selling prices were off 16 percent, to $261/st from $311/st. AN prices were off 18 percent, to $308/st from $377/st, and ammonia prices were off 39 percent, to $416/st from $687/st. Cost of purchased ammonia for use as an input was off 32 percent, to $419/st from $619/st, while gas costs were up 39 percent, to $5.25/mmBtu from $3.78/mmBtu. On the IMO side of the segment, nitric acid sales were up 81 percent, to $141.1 million from $77.8 million, while AN/AN solution sales were up 47 percent, to $41 million from $28 million. Results from LSB’s Climate Control segment were off, with operating income $4.3 million on sales of $60.3 million, down from the year-ago $6.4 million and $70.3 million, respectively.

Pryor NH3 on target; urea, UAN up

News, News Briefs

Oklahoma City — LSB Industries Inc. said May 6 that its Pryor, Okla., chemical facility ran its anhydrous ammonia plant for the full month of April 2014 at its targeted production rate of approximately 650 st/d on average, and has continued that into May. As previously reported, Pryor’s anhydrous ammonia plant returned to production during the last several days of February 2014 at a reduced rate and was gradually brought up to its targeted rate during March. Additionally, in early May 2014, the facility resumed production of urea and UAN. “The extensive work we have performed to upgrade and improve the reliability of our Pryor facility is beginning to yield results,” said Jack Golsen, LSB board chairman and CEO. “With the anhydrous ammonia plant now producing at targeted rates, we can significantly increase LSB’s output of urea and UAN, and capitalize on the market opportunities for these products. While our upgrade of Pryor is not yet complete, we are pleased with the progress we have made to date, and anticipate meaningful improvement of the plant’s operating performance in the future.”

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