The Indian government this week announced it would start closing its state-owned trading companies STC and MMTC. The announcement said the closing would take place one at a time without a specified timetable. The first to go is expected to be STC. The trading house showed losses in the 2018/19 fiscal year exceeding US$124 million.
The closing of MMTC as a state-owned enterprise will come in steps, according to Indian media reports. The plan announced so far will reduce the government’s stake in MMTC from 90 percent to 75 percent. Other reports indicated the government may move to completely divest itself of MMTC.
International traders called the announcement significant. Currently all urea for agriculture use is imported by MMTC, STC, and IPL. So far this year only MMTC has been importing urea. Urea, unlike phosphates and potash, is heavily subsidized and remains a politically volatile commodity. Efforts to lower subsidies or to move urea sales to a market-based system have been met with opposition from farmers and agriculture groups in the country. One source told Green Markets the move could open a window of opportunity for private-sector companies to import urea. Given the political nature of urea imports, however, the government will most likely remain involved in the urea market.
Anuvia Plant Nutrients, Zellwood, Fla., reported on Sept. 24 that it has signed a long-term lease agreement with The Mosaic Co. to utilize a portion of Mosaic’s shuttered Plant City, Fla., phosphate production facility to manufacture Anuvia’s bio-based plant nutrient products. Anuvia said the strategic agreement will expand its production capacity to 1.2 million st/y, up from the current 80,000 st/y produced at the company’s existing Zellwood facility.
Anuvia said it will re-purpose existing infrastructure at Plant City, with plans to add approximately 135 new employees and have the facility operational by second quarter 2020. Anuvia’s products include SymTRX™ for the agricultural sector, GreenTRX™ for the turf industry, and ANUGREEN for the consumer residential lawn market.
The Mosaic Co., Plymouth, Minn., announced in June that it was permanently closing the Plant City facility, which is located in Hillsborough County, Fla. The plant was idled in late 2017 due to global phosphate market conditions.
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