Yara cuts production at Le Havre and Sluiskil

Oslo-Yara International ASA said Nov. 14 it will temporarily stop production of ammonia and urea at its site in Le Havre, France, by early next week. Ammonia and urea production at Yara’s site in Sluiskil, Netherlands, will also be reduced temporarily. The timing of restarts will depend on the development in ammonia, urea, and natural gas markets. The Le Havre plant has an annual production capacity of 400,000 mt of ammonia and 350,000 mt of urea. The plant in Sluiskil is reducing production equivalent to 900,000 mt of ammonia and 200,000 mt of urea on an annual basis. The decision to stop production temporarily is related to the current situation in international ammonia and urea markets. The Le Havre plant will be conserved and on standby for start-up when market conditions improve. Lay-offs are not anticipated, as employees will attend to plant safety and other tasks. Yara will continue to fulfill customer contracts from built-up stock and alternative product sourcing. Yara will import cheaper ammonia to Sluiskil as raw material for nitrate production. The curtailments in Le Havre and Sluiskil, combined with the previously announced stop in Ferrara, reduce Yara’s global production by 1.9 million mt of ammonia and 1.1 million mt of urea on an annual basis. In energy terms these curtailments represent an annualized reduction in natural gas consumption of approximately 65 million mmBtus.