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Latin America

16 January 2026

US intervention spotlights Venezuela fertilizer assets

Venezuela’s nitrogen industry faces uncertainty from US military intervention, as outlined in a recent CRU analysis.


Strategic facilities

State-owned Pequiven manages three northern coastal plants with 2.4 Mt annual ammonia capacity and 3.0 Mt urea capacity. These sites link directly to PDVSA pipelines and nearby natural gas operations.


Historical disruptions and 2023 rebound

US sanctions from 2018-2022 triggered gas shortages, power failures, and equipment breakdowns, holding ammonia output to a 280,000 t yearly average and urea to 360,000 t. Output climbed in 2023 to 510,000 t ammonia and 900,000 t urea based on CRU and IFA figures; urea exports expanded to Brazil (over 90% of total) and Colombia at discounted prices, equaling 5% of Brazil’s 2025 imports mainly from Pequiven-Jose. Ammonia exports ended late 2024, with 2025 levels below 2023 peaks yet stronger than 2018-2022.


Limited global effects

“US military intervention in Venezuela has raised questions over fertilizer assets in a country that sits on the world’s largest crude-oil reserves,” wrote Pranshi Goyal of CRU on 7 January 2026. While potential disruptions from political escalation or higher shipping and insurance costs may complicate future trade, Venezuela’s small share of the global market (~1%) means any immediate worldwide impact is limited. In the near term, regional demand is slowing as Latin America enters its off-season.
Currently, Port Jose is understood to have sustained minimal damage, with no impact on urea trade observed to date. Still, a war-risk premium on shipping costs presents a global supply chain risk, said Goyal.


Trump moves may unlock Dragon field gas (to 10 mcm/day) for Trinidad plants via Shell. Royal Dutch Shell plans to drill three initial wells at the stalled Dragon gas field (120 billion cubic metres total), building a 10-mile subsea pipeline to its Hibiscus platform in Trinidad. Currently frozen, the project could restart quickly with political support, starting at 5 million cubic metres (mcm) gas per day and scaling to 10 mcm/day. This gas would supply Trinidad’s ammonia and LNG plants, strained by years of declining domestic production.

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