U.S. Gulf: Sulfuric acid delivered by vessel in the Gulf of Mexico was called $60-$65/mt CFR.
More than 800,000 people were affected in northern Mexico on Aug. 6 when 10.6 million gallons of sulfuric acid leaked from a holding pond at the Buenavista Copper Mine in Sonora. The acid spilled into the Sonora and Bacanuchi rivers, which spread the caustic material across much of northern Mexico. The spill resulted in the closure of 88 schools, impacting roughly 5,000 children, until acid in the rivers returned to acceptable levels.
Mexican authorities attempted to neutralize the spill by dumping tons of calcium into the affected river stage, but unsafe quantities were still detectable more than a week later. Officials blamed the spill on either a design or construction flaw in the holding pond, along with negligence on the part of mine supervisors.
The mine, owned by Grupo México, produces 200,000 mt/y of copper and is one of the largest copper mines in the world.
U.S. Imports: June imports were up 23 percent, to 315,702 st from the year-ago 225,671 st, while fertilizer year imports were up only 4 percent, to 3.35 million st from 3.22 million st.