Tag: Yara

CRU’s Nitrogen + Syngas conference returned to a face to face meeting for the first time in two years at the end of March this year.

Market Insight courtesy of Argus Media

Switzerland-based EuroChem Group AG says it has entered into exclusive negotiations to acquire the nitrogen business of the Borealis group, after having submitted a binding offer. One of Europe’s leading fertilizer producers, Borealis operates fertilizer plants in Germany, Austria and France, as well as more than 50 distribution points across Europe. It supplies 3.9 million tonnes of fertilizer products per year, including 800,000 t/a of technical nitrogen solutions and 150,000 t/a of melamine via the Borealis LAT distribution network. It is a market leader in melamine, with its operations in Austria and Germany supplying primarily the woodworking industry. EuroChem says that melamine and technical nitrogen solutions represent important new business lines for the company to expand its nitrogen-based product portfolio in Europe.

High feedstock prices and regulatory burdens continue to put pressure on European nitrogen producers to innovate.

Market Insight courtesy of Argus Media

EuroChem Group recently completed the purchase of the Serra do Salitre project from Yara International for $452 million. This one million tonne capacity Brazilian phosphate project is due to be completed in 2024.

EuroChem has made a binding offer for Borealis Group’s fertilizer, melamine and technical nitrogen business.

German slurry handling specialist Vogelsang has just launched a new acidification technology which it claims will reduce ammonia emissions from agriculture, reducing up to 70% of ammonia to nutrient rich ammonium. Its new SyreN technology is an onboard sulphuric acid dosing system for tractors that treats slurry or digestate as it is applied to the land. It uses a front-linkage mounted unit to carry the acid, which also improves tractor weight distribution. The acid is dosed when the organic fertiliser is fed to the applicator, with a pH regulator automatically controlling and adjusting the flow. Nitrogen uptake of organic fertilizer is also increased by up to 1/3 as the ammonium is more easily metabolised by the soil. Results from a study in Germany showed that the acidifying slurry increased crop yield by up to 20%. The sulphur contained in the acid also becomes available to the plants as sulphate after spreading, eliminating the need for an additional pass over the field to administer a supplementary sulphur fertiliser, such as ammonium sulphate nitrate. At approximately 30 kg/ha, the amount of sulphur introduced into the crop with the SyreN system corresponds to the average amount of sulphur that is already applied to crops in the course of a growing season.

Market Insight courtesy of Argus Media

Belarus sanctions, freight costs and strong demand are pushing MOP pricing to new heights, says Andy Hemphill, senior editor for potash and sulphuric acid at ICIS Fertilizers.