Derailment to cost IPL A$14 million – Alert
Incitec Pivot Ltd. reports that a Dec. 27, 2015 train derailment will have an adverse one-off impact to full year Net Profit After Tax (NPAT) of approximately A$14 million. The incident was reported in the Jan. 1 issue of Green Markets.
The train, operated by a third party freight operator, was transporting a shipment of sulfuric acid for use at IPL’s Phosphate Hill fertilizer manufacturing facility in Queensland, Australia. The train derailed near Julia Creek, while en route from Townsville.
Wet weather had been delaying access to the site and the latest local reports are that some of the acid has made its way to a local creek.
Queensland Rail is now building access roads to enable commencement of construction of a rail deviation around the derailment site. Rail services are continuing to operate between IPL’s Mt. Isa and Phosphate Hill facilities. IPL expects full plant operations to resume during the third week of January 2016.
IPL’s Phosphate Hill plant is still expected to produce 950,000 mt of fertilizer during IPL’s 2016 financial year. IPL does not believe the fertilizer supply to the Australian domestic market will be affected, assuming a normal winter crop season.