Junior phosphate and potash miner GrowMax Resources Corp., Calgary, has announced that two long-time industry veterans have agreed to stand for election to its board of directors at its June 28 shareholders’ meeting. They are John Van Brunt, former Agrium Inc. CEO, who has some 40 years of experience in the production and distribution of agricultural products, and Steven Paxton, former senior executive with The Mosaic Co. and predecessor companies, with over 35 years of global fertilizer sales and marketing management experience.
“We are very pleased to have Mr. Van Brunt and Mr. Paxton agreeing to join our board,” said Abby Badwi, GrowMax executive chairman. “Their vast collective experience in the fertilizer business will be most valuable for the company and its forward growth plans.”
GrowMax also reported that another director, Rakesh Kapur, joint managing director, Indian Farmers Fertiliser Cooperative Ltd. (IFFCO), was elected to be chairman of the International Fertilizer Association (IFA) in May.
The company noted that Ken Geren has elected not to stand for re-election as director.
GrowMax also announced that it has cash and equivalents on hand of approximately $46.4 million as of March 31, 2017. “The company’s strong working capital balance, combined with the progress we continue to make on our core Peruvian fertilizer assets, has helped us attract strong new board members, which we believe further strengthens our positioning and ability to execute our strategy of becoming a leading producer of potash and phosphate fertilizer products in Peru,” added Stephen Keith, GrowMax president.
GrowMax reported that during May it received a two-year extension and modification to its Bayovar property transfer agreement. The company has agreed to complete a revised economic study by March 2018; commence production by May 2019; pay US$500,000 over two years to a Peruvian state-owned company, half of which will be distributed by that company to the local community; produce a minimum of 70 percent of the annual sales volume set forth in the applicable economic study; and invest a minimum of $19.8 million in the project from May 2016-May 2019, of which the company estimates that it has fulfilled $3.9 million up to May 2017.
The company recently announced that it is studying a pilot potassium sulfate plant for the project (GM Feb. 10, p. 14).
GrowMax, a Canadian company, is pursuing phosphate and potash resources on its Bayovar property in the Sechura Desert in northwestern Peru. GrowMax owns 92 percent of GrowMax Agri Corp., a private company that owns 100 percent of the Bayovar property, which covers approximately 227,000 gross acres. IFFCO and affiliates own 8 percent.
U.S. Gulf: New NOLA granular prompt barges trades were put in the $160-$168/st FOB range, with sources saying some players were liquidating their positions. Another said there was still enough product in the NOLA market for steady trading. CF exports and trader re-exports are believed to have tightened supplies.
NOLA prills continued to be quiet, and remained at $175-$185/st FOB.
Eastern Cornbelt: The granular urea market was quoted at $200-$220/st FOB in the Eastern Cornbelt, down another $5/st from last report, with the low reported out of spot Illinois River locations and the upper end at Burns Harbor, Ind. Sources pegged the Cincinnati, Ohio, urea market at $205-$210/st FOB.
Urea pricing out of Michigan terminals generally fell in the $240-$245/st FOB range in late May.
Western Cornbelt: The granular urea market had reportedly slipped to $205-$210/st FOB St. Louis, Mo., with the upper end of the Western Cornbelt range quoted at $220-$225/st FOB inland warehouses.
Northern Plains: Sources quoted the Twin Cities granular urea market at $200-$205/st FOB in late May, down some $15-$20/st from the brief mid-month spike that occurred when high water levels on the Mississippi River slowed barge movement.
Sources continued to report delivered urea in the $240-$260/st range in North Dakota, with terminal pricing referenced at $255-$260/st FOB Carrington, N.D. One contact reported some early sidedress demand starting in some sections of the region, and said he expects “a long, drawn-out sidedress season” in the Dakotas.
Northeast: Granular urea pricing had reportedly dropped to $215-$225/st FOB in the Northeast, down $5/st from last report, with the low confirmed at East Liverpool, Ohio. Sources quoted the Fairless, Penn., urea market in the $220-$225/st FOB range for new sales.
On a delivered basis, Pennsylvania sources quoted spot urea offers at the $253/st level in late May, down some $17/st from last report.
Eastern Canada: Granular urea was quoted in the $420-$435/mt FOB range in Eastern Canada, depending on location and supplier, with the low end of the range reflecting a $10/mt drop from last report.
India: The IPL urea tender closed with offers about $20/mt lower than the previous tender just a month ago. The low price for the West Coast was from Comzest at $211.25/mt CFR into Rozy. The lowest offer to the East Coast came from Dreymoor at $212.25/mt CFR into Gangavaram. Eighteen companies put forth about 1.6 million tons in firm offers and 90,000 mt in options.
Sources said the offers were not surprising given the steady slide in global prices for the past month. The only respite came last week during the IFA conference in Marrakesh, when some traders were accused of hyping the market.
Muntajat from Qatar was the only Arab Gulf producer to offer tons directly. Sources said the offering price of $215/mt FOB for 30,000 mt ensured the company would not be included in any second-round talks. Fertil and Fertisul sent their rejects to IPL for not participating.
A tabulation of the tender follows:
Offering Company
Quantity (mt)
Price
US$/mt CFR
Discharge Port
Remarks
Firm
Optional
Comzest
60,000
211.43
Rozy
40,000
211.25
New Mangalore
60,000
211.70
Mundra
25,000
213.50
Kandla
30,000
212.33
Pipavav
60,000
222.50
Gangavaram
New Horizon
40,000
211.70
Pipavav
45,000
211.43
Mundra
Keytrade
42,000
211.98
Mundra-Kandla-Pipavav
214.98
Gangavaram
Dreymoor
115,000
212.25
Gangavaram
213.35
Krishnapatnam-Vizag-Kakinada
212.97
Pipavav
213.17
Mundra-Hazira
213.32
New Mangalore
213.67
Adani Tuna – Kandla
Swiss Singapore
80,000
212.33
Rozy-Pipavav
60,000
222.50
Krishnapatnam
Transagri
182,000
213.90
Rozy
214.10
Mundra
215.50
Kandla
214.50
Pipavav
Transglobe
60,000
214.40
Mundra
Ameropa
48,000
215.89
Kandla
36,500
217.61
Hazira
30,000
217.87
Mundra
Helm
55,000
216.50
Kandla
AED 795/mt
Koch
47,500
218.25
Mundra
46,300
223.07
Krishnapatnam
Amber
45,000
218.75
Mundra-Kandla
65,000
221.25
Gangavaram
222.25
Kakinada-Vizag-Krishnapatnam-Karaikal
Allied Harvest
45,000
218.80
Mundra-Kandla
222.80
Krishnapatnam-Gangavaram
Midgulf
63,000
219.75
Mundra-Kandla-Pipavav
220.75
Krishnapatnam-Gangavaram-Karaikal-Vizag-Kakinada
CHS Europa
44,000
221.73
Kandla
Continental
30,000
30,000
224.95
Adani Tuna
Aries
170,000
225.00
Krishnapatnam
232.00
Kakinada
227.00
New Mangalore
Dragon Fertilizers
60,000
231.78
Gangavaram
233.66
Mundra-Kandla
232.48
Krishnapatnam
All told, IPL ended up giving awards to six companies for a total of about 510,000 mt by May 31, and then closed the tender. Sources said the buyer closed the tender once it booked the tonnage it needed this time around. Had the second-round talks been more difficult or if they needed more tons, said one trader, IPL might have held off on its final set of purchases up until validity on the offers expired June 2.
Prices range from the lowest prices on the East and West Coasts. A list of the final awards follows:
Offering Company
Quantity (mt)
Discharge Port
Comzest
110,000
Mundra
45,000
Adani Tuna
40,000
Hazira
New Horizon
60,000
Pipavav
Transglobe
50,000
Kakinada
Transagri
50,000
Krishnapatnam
50,000
Adani Tuna
Dreymoor
50,000-55,000
Gangavaram
Keytrade
42,000
Adani Tuna
Indian urea buyers will go quiet until July, said sources. The tonnage from this tender has a ship-by date of July 12. Sources said there is no reason for another tender to start until all the material from this tender has been loaded and is on its way to India.
Sources also said there was not much reason for the tender to be called when it was. They said the country had plenty of material on hand from domestic production and from the last tender, which netted about 1 million tons. One industry watcher pointed out that anything to do with urea is fraught with political complications, and perhaps calling the tender was the safest and easiest thing to do to avoid complaints from local politicians, who claim that not enough was being done to ensure plenty of urea for the current application season.
The government changed its expectations for imported urea. The government bean counters now say that imports from tenders should not have to exceed 5.5 million tons this year. This is down about 500,000 mt from previous estimates. Indian importers have so far secured about 1.6 million tons in tender purchases.
Sources said the lower estimate comes from a combination of reduced demand and increased domestic production. Sources said the neem-coated urea required of domestic production helps slow release of the nutrients, thereby allowing farmers to apply less urea.
The reduced expectations mean importers will only have to secure 500,000-600,000 mt each month for the rest of the year, instead of the previously estimated 900,000-1 million mt.
Middle East: The netback in the IPL/India urea tender puts the price at $195-$199/mt FOB into the Arab Gulf. This level is being backed up by a sale to Thailand. The Thai business was pegged at $215-220/mt CFR.
The only Arab producer to directly offer tonnage in the IPL/India tender was Muntajat of Qatar. The price for its 30,000 mt was $215/mt FOB, which sources called way out of line. One trader said the company tried to justify its offer by pointing to a deal last week at $208/mt FOB. Several sources said the $208/mt FOB deal appeared to be a long position designed to hype the market. In the end, the product was not sold to India.
Sources are now putting the Arab urea market at $197-$200/mt FOB. The netback from the IPL/India tender affects the price out of Iran more than the Arab producers, said one trader. Sources said it is clear, however, that the days of $200/mt FOB and higher for urea from the area are gone.
Iranian producers are expected to supply about 400,000 mt in the IPL tender. Sources said Iran usually has about 300,000 mt available each time, but the extended ship-by deadline offers Iranian producers the opportunity to dip into third-quarter production to cover a cargo or two. In addition, said one trader, new Iranian production is slated to be up and running by the end of this month.
Egypt squeezed a few more dollars out of buyers in a move not replicated by other sellers. Sources reported a sale of $208/mt FOB to a buyer for tons to cover a short sale into Europe. One trader described the sale as a short to top off a larger deal.
China: Sources noted the almost complete absence of China from the IPL/India tender. While some tons were offered and awarded, Chinese product no longer plays a dominant role in determining the price of urea.
The softness of the global market for many producers has pushed the netback price into China below their break-even point. One trader said this level for the more efficient producers is close to $180/mt FOB, and for others as high as $250/mt FOB. Under the best scenario, the netback from the West Coast pricing in the latest tender has a netback of just under $200/mt FOB.
Chinese producers have been running at reduced rates for some time now. Sources this week put production at just under 60 percent of rated capacity.
Once the producers refused to chase Iranian producers for the lowest price into India, sources said prices in China have stabilized. Reduced output and a strong domestic season are also helping to hold prices. Sources reported that demand from prills provides a solid floor for pricing. While most international traders continue to call the prill market $215-$220/mt FOB, one trader pointed to a growing tightness in some local markets that has pushed prices up a few bucks, to just above $225/mt FOB.
While prills remain the darling of the buying set, sources said granular remains out in the cold. Domestic demand for granular is almost non-existent, said one source. Likewise, international demand is off. Granular prices continue to hover just above $210/mt FOB.
Indonesia: Sources reported that some international traders have signed offtake deals with Kaltim, but with severe reservations.
A conflict between the Indonesian producer and the international trading community flared up after awards were made for traders to handle exports on a formula basis based on published prices. After the awards were made, Kaltim tossed in one more requirement that the formula-based system must not allow prices to dip below $225/mt FOB.
In the ensuing weeks, sources said the floor was lowered to $220/mt FOB, although one trader said even this price is too high for the current market. Even with the threat of financial loss, however, some traders appeared to be ready to sign on if some price-averaging arrangement could be worked out.
The traders and the Indonesians are playing a game of chicken, said one trader not involved in the process. Reserves of granular urea are building up in Indonesia during a period of limited demand. At the same time, traders could miss out on having product when they need it if the Indonesians pull back.
Rumors circulated of a small prilled urea cargo of 5,000-6,000 mt being sold for about $223/mt FOB. The material is reportedly bound for Vietnam or the Philippines. Sources said the buyers had to go to Indonesia because of the lack of Chinese product available for export at global market prices.
Pakistan: The government reported that the country is in “more than good shape” for the current application season. Urea demand is expected to be about 3 million tons, with current reserves and expected domestic production to reach about 4 million tons.
The anticipated excess is what is prompting Pakistan’s government to allow the urea producers to offer tons for sale offshore. So far this year, the government has authorized the sale of 600,000 mt, with producers arguing for licenses to sell 1 million mt.
The current subsidized price for urea in Pakistan is pegged at $260.93/mt.
Bangladesh: The country continues to import urea from the Middle East on state-to-state deals. Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corp. (BCIC) has invited international tenders for 50,000 mt of granular urea in minimum bulk offer quantities of 25,000 mt from Ruwais, U.A.E., for delivery in 50 kg bags at the outer anchorage of Chittagong Port. Bids are due on June 12.
Meanwhile, according to BCIC’s website and local media, the government has decided to keep four domestic urea plants idled to divert gas to power plants during the current heat wave.
Bangladesh Finance Minister Abul Maal Abdul Muhith on June 1 proposed that the government construct 13 new buffer godowns and a urea formaldehyde-85 (UF-85) plant in different districts of the country to guarantee adequate fertilizer supply and distribution. The proposal is part of the government’s 7th Five-Year Plan, and also includes a zero duty rate on fertilizer imports in the coming fiscal year.
Tulsa-based Magellan Midstream Partners Inc. is completing testing and maintenance on a section of its anhydrous ammonia pipeline that extends from Monona County, Iowa, south to Greenwood, Neb. The maintenance project began in early May, and was expected to take two to three weeks to complete. According to local news reports, Magellan said the displaced ammonia would be stored in Greenwood while the testing and venting process is underway.
The section of pipeline under testing includes the site of a fatal ammonia leak that occurred near Tekamah, Neb., on Oct. 17, 2016, and claimed the life of a local farmer, Phillip W. Hennig (GM Oct. 21, 2016). The leak resulted in evacuations and road closures near the site that lasted for days, with the pipeline finally returning to normal operations on Nov. 17 (GM Nov. 18, 2016).
Magellan’s ammonia pipeline stretches 1,100 miles, from Borger, Texas, to Mankato, Minn., and transports ammonia to 13 terminals located in Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa, and Minnesota. The pipeline is fed by ammonia production facilities at Borger and at Enid and Verdigris, Okla.
U.S. Gulf: Sources described ongoing high-water operating conditions throughout much of the Gulf shipping region.
Baton Rouge, La., remained an area of particular concern. The National Weather Service (NWS) recorded a 40.6-foot crest on May 30, slightly above the gauge’s 40-foot “major” flood threshold, and the third-highest depth reading for the area since May 2011. The gauge is predicted to descend slowly, remaining above flood stage through at least mid-June.
New Orleans reported levels at 16.46 feet and holding on May 31, just shy of the 17-foot flood stage.
The Corps estimated Industrial Lock delays at “24-plus hours” for the week. With 42 vessels queued to lock on May 31, however, some sources estimated wait times nearing two days. Algiers Lock waits were called 10-14 hours for the week, and Bayou Sorrel delays were reported in the 5-6 hour range.
The Brazos River floodgates were scheduled to resume normal operating hours on May 31. The gates had previously been closed to daytime navigation due to contractor activities. Dredging in the West Canal slowed transits at Miles 395-400 between Freeport Harbor and Upper Matagorda Bay. The dredge is operating on a 24-hour, seven-day schedule, necessitating that vessels contact the dredge prior to arrival to obtain passing instructions.
The Corps announced emergency guide wall repairs at Bayou Sorrel Lock starting on June 7. The work will close the lock to Monday-through-Thursday traffic between 7:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., with the project set to conclude on Aug. 7. Harvey Lock will shut down completely for two months starting in August for dewatering and repairs. Sources cited a tentative Sept. 30 reopening date. Algiers Lock will be available as an alternate route.
Mississippi River:High-water conditions on the Upper Mississippi River slowed transits, prompting both reduced tow lengths and delayed pickups and deliveries.
Tows were slashed from 15 to 12 barges south of Minneapolis, adding an estimated 2-4 days to area transits. The Dubuque, Iowa, gauge registered a moderate-flood 18.41 feet on May 31 after peaking at 18.8 feet on May 29-30. Levels were predicted to recede below flood stage on June 2. Hannibal, Mo., depths were clocked at a minor-flood 18.54 feet and rising on May 31, with forecasts of a 19.7-foot peak on June 4.
St. Louis-area vessels continued to see tow lengths cut by 5-10 barges, and commercial navigation was restricted to daylight hours only between St. Louis and Cairo, Ill. Some shippers expected a return to normal operations on June 2-3. Until then, transit times were projected to swell by 2-3 days while restrictions remain in place.
Southbound tows were reduced by 5-15 barges between Cairo and Baton Rouge, shippers reported. Coupled with daytime running restrictions, southbound traffic faced delays in the 2-4 day range. The Cairo gauge returned a minor flood stage 42.24-foot reading on May 31, with the NWS forecasting a 43-foot crest on June 2-3.
Work on the Lock 15 lower guide wall, responsible for intermittent delays since May 20, was scheduled to conclude on June 3. The lock’s auxiliary chamber is closed for repairs through Aug. 3. The Mel Price Lock auxiliary chamber is scheduled to go offline July 7 through Sept. 10 for repairs.
Lock 19 waits were heard in the 3-4 hour range, while Locks 20, 21, and 22 reported transit times stretching to five hours. The Corps reported average Lock 25 delays of 7-8 hours on May 31.
Illinois River: Elevated water levels pushed into the Lower Illinois Waterway last week, triggering towing restrictions in the area. Travel times were estimated to run 2-5 days above average, but some sources expected operating conditions to normalize around June 2-3 based on recent NWS forecasts.
The Beardstown, Ill., river gauge was at a moderate flood stage level of 19.7 feet and falling on May 31. The gauge was predicted to remain above the 14-foot flood stage through at least June 7.
Ohio River:In an effort to reduce swollen river levels, Ohio River dams operated at maximum release last week. The resulting swift flows hampered northbound navigation, shippers said, increasing transit times by 12-24 hours below McAlpine Lock. Ongoing tow reductions of 5-15 barges at the Cairo interchange further slowed southbound transits, shippers said.
The Dashields Lock main chamber closed to daytime traffic May 30 through June 1, forcing navigation through the auxiliary chamber instead. Repairs have shuttered the Meldahl Lock main chamber through Oct. 2, driving all traffic through the auxiliary chamber for the project’s duration. Delays of 10 hours or more were reported on May 30-31. Ironton-Russell Bridge demolition closed the area to navigation on May 29. Additional work will close the channel again on June 15.
The main chamber at Greenup Lock is scheduled to shut down to daylight-hour navigation on Monday-through-Thursday transits, between June 5 and July 21. Cannelton Lock is scheduled to undergo a main chamber shutdown July 5 through Sept. 5, with substantial delays anticipated.
Major delays are projected for Emsworth Lock starting June 26. Locking will be limited to 12:00 a.m. through 8:00 a.m. daily. Vessels will be subject to an 80-foot width limit, and the lock will reopen every other weekend to relieve congestion. The Belleville Lock main chamber will be offline Oct. 2 through Dec. 7 for maintenance and repairs.
Wilson Lock, on the Tennessee River, will experience intermittent daylight-hour shutdowns through June 29, with some of the closures expected to block navigation for a full 10 hours. Sporadic service interruptions are predicted at Fort Loudon Lock June 15 through July 15 due to nearby bridge work. The Tombigbee Waterway will close at Demopolis Lock on July 6-11, blocking transit.
The Monongahela River’s Lock 4 is completely closed to weekday navigation through June 20. Passage is restricted to Saturday and Sunday locking via the auxiliary chamber only, with excessive delays reported.
The Allegheny River’s Lock 6 is closed indefinitely due to a hydraulic leak. Lock 4 is slated to shut down Oct. 2 through Nov. 8, closing the river. The Cumberland River’s Old Hickory Lock will be unavailable on June 4 for repairs, closing the river.
Arkansas River: Localized high-water conditions persisted on the Arkansas River last week, with Muskogee, Okla., levels pegged at 27.9 feet and holding on May 31, above the area’s 27-foot action stage. Barge movement continued for the week, with reduced barge counts on the upper river said to slow Catoosa deliveries.
U.S. Gulf: NOLA UAN barges remained under pressure, with most sources putting them in the $155-$160/st ($4.84-$5.00/unit) FOB range at best. Others continued to say it would take lower numbers to garner much interest. Another said there was no interest in barges.
The East Coast vessel market was called $160-$165/mt CFR, with buyers eyeing $155/mt CFR.
Eastern Cornbelt: UAN-28 pricing had reportedly fallen to as low as $150-$153.15/st ($5.36-$5.47/unit) FOB Cincinnati, with UAN-32 pegged at the $175/st ($5.47/unit) FOB level there and at Mount Vernon, Ind. Out of inland terminals in Ohio, the UAN-28 market was quoted at the $170/st ($6.07/unit) FOB level for new sales. Illinois sources quoted the bulk of UAN-32 spot quotes in the $185-$195/st ($5.78-$6.09/unit) FOB range in late May.
Out of Michigan terminals, the UAN-28 market was quoted in the $184-$195/st ($6.57-$6.96/unit) FOB range, depending on location.
Sources reported some demand starting for sidedress applications in late May. “We will have preplant, pre-emergence, and sidedress applications all taking place at the same time,” said one contact, noting a significant amount of replanting going on in his area.
Western Cornbelt: UAN-32 was pegged at $185-$205/st ($5.78-$6.41/unit) FOB in the Western Cornbelt, with the lower end of the range quoted out of spot river terminals in Iowa and Missouri.
Northern Plains: UAN-28 pricing in the Northern Plains remained in a broad range at $185-$205/st ($6.62-$7.32/unit) FOB, down $5-$10/st from last report, with the low quoted in the Twin Cities market. Delivered tons were steady at the $220/st ($7.86/unit) level in central and western North Dakota.
Northeast: Sources quoted the UAN-32 market at $170-$175/st ($5.31-$5.47/unit) FOB Baltimore, Md., down another $5-$10/st from last report, with UAN-30 pegged at the $164/st ($5.47/unit) level at that location. The UAN-32 market out of terminals in upstate New York had reportedly slipped to $210/st ($6.56/unit) FOB, down $14/st from early-May pricing levels.
Eastern Canada: The UAN-28 market was down slightly at $275-$290/mt ($9.82-$10.36/unit) FOB terminals in Eastern Canada, with the bottom of the range showing a drop of $10/mt from April levels.
France: Little new UAN business was heard amid thin demand. Prices have been moving down, sources said, with new season prices said to be in the mid- to high-€130s/mt FCA Rouen.
U.S. Gulf: Market watchers called sulfuric acid imported to the Gulf of Mexico in a $50-$55/mt CFR range, unchanged from the previous week. Tons destined for Brazil were heard at $55-$60/mt CFR, with recent Northwest European business described in the $15-$20/mt FOB range.
On the domestic side, Gulf business was quoted in the $90-$100/t DEL range, with Midwest deliveries steady at $80-$90/t. Material destined for the West Coast market was described at $100-$110/t DEL.
The Missouri House of Representatives passed a bill on May 24 potentially clearing the way for reduced electricity rates available to large-scale industrial manufacturers. The bill must still clear the Senate before becoming law.
Lawmakers hope the legislation will provide incentives to partially reopen the state’s shuttered Noranda Aluminum plant, a 263,000 mt/y smelter located near New Madrid. The facility closed in 2016, a casualty of depressed aluminum prices, soaring electric rates, and a series of costly accidents, including a January 2016 power outage that shut down two of the facility’s three pot lines.
Tampa: A number of sulfur traders have reported lengthened railcar turnaround times following deliveries in recent weeks. “Operationally, our railcars are enduring increased delays as the CSX begins changing service parameters,” said one source, adding that the delays remained minimal. “No cars are sitting at destination for very long.”
The second-quarter contract for molten sulfur delivered to Tampa was valued at $70/lt, $5/lt below the first-quarter contract.
Domestic refinery utilization pressed higher again last week, its third consecutive period of increased capacity, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Utilization was calculated at 95.0 percent for the week ending May 26, a 1.5 percent increase from the prior week’s 93.5 percent, and also considerably higher than both the year-ago 89.8 percent and the five-year average of 91.4 percent.
Average daily crude inputs turned in a record 17.510 million barrels/d for the week, a 229,000 barrel/d increase from the 17.281 million barrels/d noted in the previous report.
U.S. Gulf: Saudi Aramco plans to invest a minimum $12 billion to expand its Motiva refinery, located in Port Arthur, Texas, according to numerous reports.
Aramco assumed sole ownership of Motiva and the 636,500 barrel/d facility, the largest refinery in the U.S., on May 1 after splitting with former partner Royal Dutch Shell Plc. In addition to the initial $12 billion, Aramco is considering investing a further $18 billion into its U.S. business over the next five years, reports indicated.
Market players described Gulf solid sulfur pricing in the $70-$75/mt FOB range, unchanged from the previous report.
Vancouver: Observers noted no change in the Vancouver spot price, calling last-done in the $73-$77/mt FOB range. Framed at the upper end by Vancouver pricing, Alberta sulfur producers’ netbacks were described at (-)$55-$10/mt FOB, with the range’s low end netting back from molten contract tons earmarked for the U.S. market.
A Canadian National Railway (CN) employees’ union called off a planned strike after reaching a tentative labor agreement on May 29. The work stoppage, expected to begin on May 30, could have negatively impacted buyers supplied by rail from Canadian sources. “A CN strike would affect a significant amount of sulfur moving into both the U.S. and Vancouver markets,” said one source.
Market watchers described firming sentiment in the Chinese market. While last-done remained in the $90-$94/mt CFR range for the week, sources reported buyer interest at $94-$98/mt CFR, voicing expectations for the next round of business to land in that range.
QPSPP: QPSPP announced a Qatar sulfur price at $78/mt FOB Ras Laffan for June loading, a $2/mt increase from the $76/mt FOB price for May.
Lawn and garden giant The Scotts Co., Marysville, Ohio, and its subsidiary, OMS Investments Inc., have brought suit against competitor Central Garden & Pet Co., Walnut Creek, Calif., and its subsidiary Gro Tec Inc., saying the defendants have begun manufacturing and selling lawn care products in packaging that imitates Scotts’ distinctive packaging. The case was filed May 24 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, Eastern Division.
Scotts says the side-by-side placement of the Central-made private label product, Sta-Green® brand, which is sold by retailer Lowe’s Companies Inc., constitutes unfair competition and infringement of Scotts’ trademark, copyright, and other intellectual property rights. Scotts says the conduct is knowing, intentional, and designed to trade on the Scotts long-standing reputation.
Scotts says over the years it has developed a specific “trade dress” for its products, including a color coding system for its Turf Builder® products – green and white for Lawn Food and Starter Food for New Grass products, purple and white for Southern Weed and Feed, yellow for Weed and Feed, and blue for Crabgrass Preventer. It noted that it has filed federal trademark and copyright registrations for these package designs, and says Central’s color schemes are not materially different from Scotts’ designs.
In what Scotts calls a highly competitive business, it says “Central uses the same color palette of green, purple, yellow, and blue, combined with similar components in the packaging, to imitate Scotts’ packaging. When the packages are stacked vertically or horizontally, as they are at Lowe’s stores, the similarity is even stronger.” Scotts provided photos in its complaint to further make its argument.
Scotts said the “accused packaging” is likely to cause confusion, mistake, or deception as to origin, sponsorship, or approval of Central’s product. It fears consumers will likely believe the products are the same as, or lower priced versions of, Scotts’ products.
Scotts is seeking preliminary and permanent injunction on Central’s use of the packaging. It is also seeking damages for lost profits; any actual and statutory damages, including triple and punitive damages; costs; and attorney fees.
Scotts says this is not the first time Central has imitated Scotts Turf Builder packaging. Scotts said it filed suit against Central in 2014 also alleging unfair competition and deceptive trade practices with respect to another lawn care product. The parties mediated that case, with it dismissed so that Central could redesign its packages, and the Central customer at the time, Walmart, stopped selling the infringing packaging.
Central had not responded to inquiries at press time.
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.
