Riyadh—Saudi Arabian Mining Co. (Ma’aden) said subsidiary Maaden Wa’ad Al-Shamal Phosphate Co. (MWSPC) has completed the construction of its 1.1 million mt/y ammonia plant at Ras Al-Khair on the Kingdom’s Arabian Gulf Coast, and trial operations have started. Long-term offtake deals are believed to have been struck with two Indian buyers earlier this summer for some of the planned merchant volumes. The ammonia plant is the first of the new production facilities to come onstream as part of MWSPC’s ambitious project, which includes new phosphate mining and downstream production plants, including those for dicalcium and monocalcium phosphate and purified phosphoric acid, in the Umm Wu’al area of northern Saudi Arabia, and a 2.2 million mt/y DAP plant at Ras Al-Khair. Ma’aden owns 60 percent of MWSPC, with Mosaic and Sabic owning 25 percent and 15 percent stakes, respectively.
David Delaney, former executive vice president and chief operating officer of Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan Inc., has joined Paine & Partners, New York City, as a strategic advisor to identify and execute attractive investment opportunities in the upstream segment of the food and agribusiness value chain.
Delaney has over 30 years of experience in the agribusiness and chemical industries. While at PotashCorp he also served as president of sales, and prior to joining the company held sales and product positions at Arcadian Corp. Ltd., which was acquired by PotashCorp in 1997. He has also served on the boards of Arab Potash Co., Canpotex Ltd., and the International Plant Nutrition Institute. He earned a B.S. in Agriculture from Southern Illinois University in 1983.
Paine & Partners has been investing in the ag input sector in recent years, including Verdesian Life Sciences LLC, QC Corp., AgBiTech, Suba Seeds, and Brotherton Seeds.
Agrium Inc. said Sept. 6 that it has received regulatory approval for its Retail business, Crop Production Services (CPS), to acquire 16 locations in Western Canada from Andrukow Group Solutions Inc., Camrose, Alba. The transaction is expected to be completed by mid-September.
“These acquisitions demonstrate our continued focus on growing our Retail business in key strategic regions, and will allow us to better serve our customers and provide benefits to growers,” said Chuck Magro, Agrium’s president and CEO. “The acquired locations will increase our Retail presence close to our manufacturing facilities in Western Canada, where we can optimize freight and handling, and in the U.S. Cornbelt, where we are under-represented in a key growing region. We remain committed to the strategy of growing our Retail business through multiple growth levers, including acquisitions, where we have a full pipeline of opportunities.”
The Canadian Competition Bureau (CCB), however, concluded that the initially proposed transaction, which was for all of Andrukow’s outlets, would lead to a substantial lessening or prevention of competition in the retail supply of urea, UAN, or anhydrous ammonia in a number of local markets in Alberta and Saskatchewan. As a result, CCB required Agrium to shed two Andrukow outlets in Sedgewick and Wainwright, Alba., as well as two existing Agrium CPS outlets in St. Paul and Marwayne, Alba.
Andrukow outlets that Agrium will retain in Alberta include Amisk, Camrose, Clyde-Flatlander, Daysland, Dewberry, Gaudin-Fort Saskatchewan, Mundare, Paradise Valley, Provost, Rycroft, Ryley, St. Paul, Strathmore, Viking, and Waskatenau, and one location in Saskatchewan at Marsden.
The CCB has required similar sales in the past related to Agrium Retail acquisitions, including the major Viterra deal back in 2013 (GM Sept. 9, 2013), as well as a more recent smaller transaction of Wendland Ag Services Ltd. in May (GM May 6, p. 19). In that one, CCB required Agrium to sell a retail location in Rosthern, Sask., and ammonia tanks in Leash and Hoey, Sask. Agrium confirmed last week that those sales are complete, with the Rosthern location going to Blair’s Fertilizer, Lanigan, Sask., and the tanks to Prince Albert Co-op, Prince Albert, Sask.
Another major CPS acquisition this summer included 18 locations from Cargill AgHorizons (U.S.) (GM July 8, p. 1) across the northern U.S. Cornbelt region.
Currently, Agrium puts its number of North American outlets at about 1,200, and worldwide at 1,500.
Washington—ResponsibleAg, the nonprofit industry initiative founded in 2014 to promote the safe storage and handling of fertilizer, announced on Sept. 6 that Yara’s West Sacramento Terminal in California on Aug. 29 became the 1,000th audit performed under the program, which now has enrolled more than 2,100 facilities. “Yara places a high importance on compliance and safety throughout our activities, and our association with ResponsibleAg has supported us in this effort,” said Jørgen C. Arentz Rostrup, president of Yara North America Inc. “We have a responsibility to the industry and to our communities to be safe and secure, and we encourage the entire industry to continue to share these goals and to work along the principles of ResponsibleAg.” Launched in the wake of the April 2013 West Fertilizer Co. explosion in West, Texas, ResponsibleAg provides regulatory compliance assessments for agribusinesses to assist them in meeting federal environmental, health, safety, and security requirements regarding the safe handling and storage of fertilizer products. The assessment checklist contains more than 320 questions and was developed by a technical committee comprised of industry, regulatory, and safety professionals. Auditors credentialed under the ResponsibleAg Certification Program use the checklist to assess compliance with federal regulations at participating facilities, and to recommend corrective actions where needed. “Fertilizer retailers, distributors, and suppliers have stepped up to the plate to show – as an industry – how committed we are to employee and community safety and security,” said J. Billy Pirkle, chairman of the ResponsibleAg board of directors. “This is a significant milestone for the organization, but we still have more work to do.” ResponsibleAg works closely with the Asmark Institute and maintains a training center and office in Owensboro, Ky.
Mosheim, Tenn.—U.S. Nitrogen Co. LLC (USN) said Sept. 6 that it has identified and corrected the issue that led to a malfunction during a startup of its nitric acid plant Aug. 23 (GM Sept. 2, p. 13). Emissions were released, and locals soon posted photos of the orange cloud above the facility. USN was back in startup mode again last week, and said it was fully cooperating with the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation. It continues to anticipate being fully operational in the next few weeks.
U.S. Gulf: Granular prompt barges edged off a bit last week, and were called $180-$184/st FOB for prompt trades. Prills continued to be called $200-$205/st FOB.
Urea imports were down 65 percent in July, to 197,158 st from the year-ago 565,007 st, which may explain a late summer price spike that has since subsided. Tonnage drops were seen from China, Russia, Algeria, Egypt, and Canada.
Eastern Cornbelt: The granular urea market was quoted at $215-$225/st FOB in the Eastern Cornbelt, down slightly from last report, with the low reported at Cincinnati and the upper end out of inland locations.
Western Cornbelt: Granular urea pricing was steady at $215-$225/st FOB out of most terminals in the Western Cornbelt.
California: The granular urea market was pegged at $300-$310/st FOB port terminals in California, with the top end of the range reflecting a drop of $10/st from last report.
Pacific Northwest: The granular urea market was quoted at $265/st FOB port terminals in the Pacific Northwest, with delivered tons pegged in the $280-$290/st range in the region.
Western Canada: Granular urea was quoted at $380-$390/mt DEL in the region, up slightly from last report.
India: The industry is still waiting to see what Indian buyers will do. The best guess by sources puts the next tender call in the last half of this month, with an edge given to the last week of September.
Sources said when the tender comes, the buying agent will be pushing for softer prices than the current $194-$196/mt CFR. The primary suppliers are expected to push back, especially the Chinese. Sources said Chinese producers are holding firm to their pricing ideas of the mid-$190s/mt FOB. At the same time, Iranian producers are beginning to argue that with the lifting of most sanctions against their country, they should no longer be expected to sell their product at a discount.
The big question the tender call will answer is how many tons India still needs for the rest of the year. If reports are accurate that the country has a current stockpile of 1.8 million mt, sources said the rest of the tenders this year will be for limited quantities. One trader said the upcoming tender could be asking for as few as 300,000 mt. In addition, the tender may call for offers of delivery to specific ports, as IPL did last month.
China: Sources said producers may find themselves either selling product for much less than they want, or being shut out of the expected Indian tender.
The next Indian tender is expected later this month. When it comes, said sources, the buyer will be looking for lower prices than the Chinese producers currently seem willing to accept. Recent tenders have gone to Iranian producers that have been willing to shave a few dollars off the price to secure large contracts. The only exception so far this year has been the most recent tender, when prices recovered by about $16/mt to their current level.
Throughout the most recent series of Indian tenders, Chinese producers held firm to their pricing ideas, and as a result, often did not receive any awards.
Sources report that reserves at the portside warehouses are now at 1 million tons, with more arriving every day. Industry watchers will be keeping an eye on how these tons are handled when the next Indian tender comes up. If the producers hold firm on pricing, sources said they will again be shut out, especially if Iran is anxious to sell.
The producers seem to be holding off for the domestic season, which begins next month. Sources said reports indicate the upcoming domestic season will be strong enough to support the current price range in the mid-$190s/mt FOB. Some producers are even said to be holding out for $197-$198/mt FOB.
One trader noted that the main thing helping hold up prices at this time is the reduced output by urea manufacturers. Reportedly the urea industry is operating at about 52 percent of rated capacities.
The country’s newer plants might be willing to accept a lower netback in an Indian tender, only because their operating costs are lower. The older plants, however, have already gone below their break-even point. The older facilities keep operating because they have to earn some money to pay employee wages and utility and input costs.
Indonesia: Producers appear ready to budge on pricing. Sources reported that two granular cargoes of 30,000 mt and 50,000 mt were sold to Ameropa for Australia at $200/mt FOB.
Sources said the price reflects an old contract price rather than the spot price of $210/mt FOB that producers say they are holding to. One trader noted, however, that in an ever-softening market and with additional tons available from Indonesia, producers may soon have to look at lowering their pricing ideas for spot tonnage.
Middle East: The Arab Gulf price is holding even. Arab producers continue to fill long-term contracts at prices reportedly below $190/mt FOB. The contract-related shipments, however, are expected to slow down. There is no longer demand from the U.S. because material shipped now would arrive too late for river barges.
The Arab producers also face competition in Europe from North African producers and the few Pacific buyers from Iran and Indonesia. Sources did report, however, that Thai buyers remain faithful to the Arab buyers – mostly Sabic. One trader said that loyalty will only remain as long as the price remains favorable to the Thais.
Iran is expected to be the main player in the upcoming Indian tender. Sources said Chinese producers have indicated they are not willing to lower their prices to meet pricing expectations in India. At the same time, India is expected to tender for limited quantities for specific ports. Industry sources estimate that a tender of 300,000 mt could easily be handled exclusively by Iran.
Egypt seems to be able to hold its price steady at $197/mt FOB. Sources said the producers are benefiting from some short sales for European buyers. These sales are expected to end by the middle of this month, leaving Egypt looking for buyers.
Black Sea: The price out of Yuzhnyy showed a rare step up this week. Sources reported sales at $192/mt FOB, with corresponding sales out of the Baltics at $190/mt FOB.
The $5/mt bump came with more reports that CIS producers are ready to keep extending their maintenance turnarounds for as long as possible.
Santiago—China’s Tianqi Lithium, the country’s largest lithium producer, has signed a non-binding offer with Chile’s Sociedad de Inversiones Ore Blanco SA to bid for its 88.62 percent stake in Sociedad de Inversiones Pampa Calichera SA, which in turn holds 23 percent of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile SA (SQM), according to a Bloomberg report. The indirect holding in SQM has been up for sale since December. Late last month, Ningbo Shanshan Co. Ltd., a Chinese manufacturer of lithium battery materials, was reported to be in advanced talks to buy up to a 30 percent stake in SQM (GM Aug. 26, p. 14). This suggests Ningbo Shanshan may be looking to acquire former SQM CEO Julio Ponce’s shares in SQM, as well as the Oro Blanco shareholding. Ponce, via the Pampa Group, holds a total 29.97 percent stake in SQM. Other companies said to have shown interest include China’s CITIC CLSA Capital Markets Ltd. and Israel Chemicals Ltd. (ICL) (GM March 25, p. 13; Jan. 4, p. 14). However, ICL said this week it would not be bidding for the indirect stake that is for sale. Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan Inc., which already owns a 32 percent shareholding in SQM, has attempted to gain control of the company in the past.
U.S. Gulf: Minor flooding persisted in a number of river tributaries in southern Louisiana last week, but conditions in the Gulf were improving, shipping operators said.
Port Allen Lock reopened to transit after a weeks-long closure stemming from recent Louisiana floods, despite being listed by the Corps as “Closure Imminent” on Sept. 7. The Charenton, East Calumet, and West Calumet Floodgates remained unavailable due to high water, however. Algiers Lock navigation delays were quoted in the 3-4 hour range.
Dredge work continued in the Baptiste Collette Bayou channel, necessitating a 75-foot width restriction in the channel. Vessels traversing Baptiste Collette were requested to contact the dredge prior to passing to confirm compliance. Doublewide tows were expected to experience delays.
The Corps is utilizing Baptiste Collette and Chandeleur Sound as a primary detour route during the Industrial Lock closure, slated to continue through Nov. 29. Shippers had previously predicted dredging would conclude and move to a new site by Labor Day.
A fire closed the Houston Ship Channel early on Sept. 6, sources said. The blaze was caused by a diesel leak near the International Terminals Co. dock, located between the Cargill and Cemex facilities. The channel was reopened the same afternoon, but transit remained unavailable near the source of the spill while cleanup efforts were underway.
Businesses affected by the closure included four Houston-area oil refineries, which were unable to receive shipments via the channel. The volume of fuel spilled had not been ascertained as of Sept. 6, sources said.
Dredging and debris removal in the West Canal will block daytime traffic at the Galveston Causeway Railroad Bridge through early 2017. The work is currently being conducted on a 12-days on, two-days off schedule, with transit continuing normally during nonworking hours.
The Corps lifted restrictions at Brazos Lock last week. Previously, elevated river levels limited operations to a single loaded barge or two empty barges per turn.
Lower Mississippi River: Shippers expect dike construction to cause transit delays in the Lake Providence area starting in mid-September. The work is projected to last through December.
Upper Mississippi River: Lock 15 at Mile 483 on the Upper Mississippi River will experience a 24-hour shutdown beginning on Sept. 14 at 5:00 a.m., effectively closing the river.
The Corps expects to restart the annual Thebes, Ill., rock removal project when levels at Cape Girardeau, Mo., fall below the 15-foot mark. Levels there were noted at 24.5 feet on Sept. 8. Shippers anticipate daytime restrictions and delays when work begins.
Illinois River: High water levels slowed navigation on the Middle and Lower Illinois Waterway last week, shippers said, but conditions on the Upper Illinois showed considerable improvement.
The Havana gauge registered minor flooding on Sept. 8, showing 14.7-foot levels and rising. Forecasts predicted a crest at 14.9 feet in the following 48 hours, although the National Weather Service expected levels to remain above action stage through at least Sept. 15.
Brandon Road Lock was closed on Sept. 7-8 for lock repair, blocking navigation through the lock.
Ohio River: An ongoing mechanical breakdown caused significant backups at Lock 52 last week, leading shippers to estimate navigation delays at an average 23 hours. Lock operators have been unable to raise 40-50 main chamber wickets positioned near the auxiliary chamber, causing a strong outward current and rendering the auxiliary chamber unusable.
Repairs are impossible until levels rise enough for all wickets to be raised, shippers said. The Corps alternated locking between northbound and southbound directions, passing 12 vessels at a time.
The Lock 52 main chamber is scheduled to close for repairs Sept. 5-16 and Sept. 19-30. It was unknown whether the lock’s auxiliary chamber closure would affect that schedule.
Vessels continued to be routed through the riverside chamber at Olmsted Lock. Tows were limited to 15 barges per lock with no hip barges permitted. Locking was suspended at Lock 53 for the week, allowing vessels to pass freely.
Main chamber maintenance at Montgomery Lock confined transit to the auxiliary unit for 16 hours daily. Traffic was routed through the auxiliary chamber from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 a.m., and the main chamber reopened to overnight navigation, subject to an 80-foot width restriction. The chamber will temporarily reopen Sept. 3-4, Sept. 17-18, Oct. 1-2, Oct. 15-16, and Oct. 29-30 to clear waiting traffic. Work is slated to end on Nov. 17.
Maintenance scheduled for both the main and auxiliary chambers at Willow Island Lock is expected to trigger intermittent delays on Sept. 6-30. The auxiliary chamber at R.C. Byrd Lock will be unavailable Oct. 3 through Dec. 9 for maintenance and repairs.
The Corps once again updated dates for a planned Kentucky Lock shutdown. The lock is now scheduled to see intermittent delays on Oct. 4-9, followed by a complete shutdown stretching through Oct. 13. The shutdown will allow repairs to the upstream guide wall, during which shippers expect to detour through Barkley Canal. Work at Wilson Lock concluded Sept. 2, ending sporadic daylight-hour delays.
A hydraulic leak shuttered Lock 6 on the Allegheny River last week, closing the river until further notice. The Monongahela River’s Braddock Lock and Dam river chamber remained closed due to an unspecified equipment failure.
Arkansas River: A complete Webbers Falls Lock shutdown that began on Aug. 22 will block navigation to Inola, Catoosa, and Muskogee until transit resumes on Sept. 11, sources said.
David D. Terry Lock miter gate rehab concluded on Sept. 4, restoring access to Little Rock.
Berezniki—Uralkali said the company’s “free float” (including shares represented as global depositary receipts [GDRs]) had been reduced to 6.5 percent of its share capital as of Sept. 7, following its latest open market buyback program. Under the Moscow Stock Exchange (MSE) rules, if the free float in common shares falls below 7.5 percent of the company’s share capital for six consecutive months, the company’s common shares will be excluded from the Level 1 quotation list – the top tier – on the MSE, and will be eligible only for the Level 3 quotation list. Uralkali de-listed from the London Stock Exchange on Dec. 22, 2015 (GM Nov. 30, 2015). The potash producer had said that a listing of its GDRs on the LSE was no longer a strategic priority for the company (GM Aug. 31, 2015). The delistings, coupled with the recent series of major stock buybacks, has prompted speculation that the company might opt to go private.
The Sulphur Institute (TSI) has announced that Ms.Kerry Kurowski has been named senior manager‚ meetings‚ member relations‚ and office services. She has worked in the events industry since 2002, having previously been employed in a similar capacity at The Biscuit & Cracker Manufacturers’ Association. She is a certified meeting professional and earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Maryland.
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