Category: Outlook & Reviews

Ammonia prices are expected to remain soft moving through January into February, with little in the way of price support from both a supply and demand perspective. January’s Tampa settlement was $100/t down on December at $525/t CFR.

Today some 75% of all urea plants worldwide operate a prilling tower as the solidification and finishing technology. A prilling tower is a large hollow concrete tower in which concentrated urea melt is sprayed from the top via a rotating bucket or static shower heads. The urea melt droplets cool and solidify while falling down some 70-100 m. The heat is removed by ambient air flowing upwards either as a natural draft due to the temperature increase or forced by means of air blowers.

As Europe struggles to move away from its previous dependence on imported Russian natural gas, prices have been high and volatile, with a corresponding catastrophic impact upon domestic ammonia production.

We are very pleased to be able to tell you that, as of this issue, Nitrogen+Syngas magazine has a new publisher. Or rather, an old publisher, as the magazine is now once again part of the CRU Group.

In a recent webinar, Chris Lawson, CRU’s Head of Fertilizers, gave the CRU view on what 2024 holds in store for the global fertilizer industry. Here are CRU’s top 10 calls for the year ahead:

For 50 years, Kimre engineers and application specialists have been solving process and gas stream emission problems in chemical and fertilizer plants around the globe. In an exclusive interview, Kimre’s new president Mary Gaston sets out her plans for the company, building on its invaluable understanding of gas and vapour stream separation and mass heat transfer.

We look ahead at fertilizer industry prospects for the next 12 months, including the key economic and agricultural drivers likely to shape the market during 2024.

With phosphate supply concerns persisting as 2023 draws to a close, CRU’s Senior Analyst Logan Collins looks back at what’s been a dynamic year for the global phosphate market.

Urea: December began on a positive note with a flurry of Egyptian urea sales and firmer prices for delivery to Brazil. The increase in values was short lived, however, and piecemeal demand in Europe was insufficient to halt the downward trend. By mid-December, buying interest from Brazil had fizzled out, although sellers breathed a sigh of relief when India’s NFL floated a new import tender on 21st December.

CRU Events will convene the 2024 Phosphates International Conference & Exhibition in Warsaw at the Hilton Warsaw City Hotel, 26-28 February.